The Scent of Rain
by Silver-eyed Hyuuga
Summary: Naruto is rejected by his team and goes off to brood. He is visited by Sandaime's ghost and receives a strange crystal. Along the way, he begins to grow fond of a certain Hyuuga...Nejinaru
1. The Jewel of Fire

Hi everyone! It's a new ficcy! Anyway, I do not own Naruto. If I did, I would have married Neji long before now and be living happily ever after. This might be a long story, cuz I am cursed with the inability to write anything short of five hundred words. or was itseven hundred? Anyway,ON WITH THE STORY!

Oh, and by the way, lets assume Naruto brought back Sasuke from Orochimaru, kay?

Chapter 1: The Jewel of Fire

Dawn exposed her pinkish hues to the sleepy village of Konoha. Everything was quiet, everything was peaceful, and everything was calm. No one was loud, obnoxious or irritable, which was why a certain Hyuuga chose to train in the wee hours of the morning instead of any other time.

Neji sighed contentedly and looked around, a scant smile gracing his normally stoic features. Tenten was accumulating "beauty sleep", and Lee was off somewhere with Gai, or probably still sleeping, so that was a plus. No ravings about "the power of youth".

Neji closed his eyes, midnight lashes framing their lids and smiled even further. He loved days like this. Days where he could just be himself, just a young boy without a care in the world. He inhaled deeply, sniffing the sweet earthy scent of the forest before coming to business. He was here to train.

He started about the business of practicing Jyuuken first. Moving so fluidly that even liquid mercury would be jealous, he engaged in the first katas of Jyuuken.

Meanwhile

A whiskered fox-child sat up, stretched, and yawned, cracking his jaw in the process. Naruto sat up and grinned. Another bridge meeting today, and another chance to kick Sasuke's ass. Naruto went about his daily morning rituals, then bounced out his apartment door making for Ichiraku.

WHAM! "IRUKA-SEEEENNSEEEEIIIIIII! IRUKAIRUKAIRUKAIRUKAIRUKA!"

Naruto glomped the older Chuunin, cutting off three-quarters of his air supply. Iruka gasped, hacked, and coughed like there was no tomorrow (which there would be if he went oxygen-deprived for much longer; at least for him).

"Maa, Naruto (gasp). Headed toward (cough) Ichiraku I presume?"

"Ne, ne, ne, ne. Iruuuuuuka-sensei! Will you treat me to Raaaaaamen, pweeeze? Onegaaaaaiiiiiii?" Naruto pulled his best puppy eyes and pouty lip, courtesy training from Moegi. Iruka twitched, trembled, then melted.

"Y-y-ynnnnno. No, Naruto." Naruto visibly drooped. Time for plan B.

"Why NOT?" Iruka smiled secretly.

"Because I have something far more special to give you, my little fox-child."

"REAAALLY!WHHHHHHAAAAAAATTTTT?" Iruka smiled slyly.

"Do you REEEAAALLLYY want to know?" A vein appeared on Naruto's forehead. Iruka'd done this before, taunted him to the breaking point and beyond. Oh well. Time for Emergency Plan X.

"Irruuuukaaa……" Ohhhh no. Iruka knew that voice. Apparently the ex-prankster wasn't so ex- at all. Naruto held up a pair of Iruka's best underwear (think hearts, smiley faces, and teddy bears). Iruka had a major coronary right on the spot.

"NARUTO! GIVE THEM BACK OR I'LL….."

"Ohhhh, so you DO admit that they're yours, hmmm?" Iruka eeped and covered his mouth, while Naruto giggled madly behind his hand. That was IT. Screw reputation and anyone else that happened to be looking.

"NARUTO, YOU…." And so, feather duster ponytail flying, a certain Chuunin chased a certain Genin through the streets of Konoha.

"Iruka, just give me the surprise."

"Fine, fine, but GIVE ME BACK MY UNDERWEAR!"

"THE SURPRISE FIRST!" Iruka sighed, defeated, and dropped a slip of paper into Naruto's waiting hands.

"A free pass to Ichiraku? THANK YOU IRUKA-SENSEEEIIIIII!" Naruto thrust the underwear into Iruka's hands then sped off in the direction of said Ramen shop. Halfway there, the kitsune paused. Ichiraku passes were extremely rare and hard to come by, and Naruto didn't want to spend this delicacy so fast. So, turning around he made straight for the Konoha library to Xerox his ramen pass.

1,829 Ramen Bowls Later (Used one pass)

What looked like a blonde spiky sea urchin bobbed its way to a certain bridge.

"Ohayo, Sakura-ch—" WHAM! "Oweee"

A peeved Sakura rubbed her smoking fist.

"NARUTO! You interrupted my conversation with Sasuke-kun!"

"But—" WHAM!

"I SAID NO!" Naruto looked crestfallen, and slunk to a corner of the bridge to brood.

Poof.

"Ohayo, minna."

"YOU'RE LATE!"

"Well, my coffee caught on fire and burned a spider on my ceiling so I had to take him to the hospital to fix him up, and…."

"LIAR!" Ah, the sweet sound of the morning ritual.

"Ok, guys. Today we are going to have a B-rank mission." Naruto's sapphire orbs lit up.

"REEEAAALLLLYYY! YAAAAYYYYY! WHAT DO WE HAFTA DO?"

"An enemy has stolen a very important scroll of ours and it is up to us to steal it back. Our sources tell us that the enemy has hidden the scroll in the core of their headquarters with all kinds of dangerous traps, and it is our job to retrieve the scroll." Naruto's eyes sparkled and he rubbed his hands in anticipation.

"However, you are not going with us, Naruto." Naruto looked up, stunned.

"Why not? I thought we were a team."

"Tsunade-sama has told me I didn't need to pick a full team for this mission. I have my choice of who is to go, and I'm choosing Sasuke and Sakura. Naruto, I'm sorry to say, but you just don't have the stealth skills required for this mission. You're just too loud and obnoxious."

Naruto was shocked. He was excluded? Even though he had tried so hard to contribute to his team? This couldn't be happening. The fox-child's eyes narrowed in anger.

"So you think I'm not worthy enough, do you?" Every word was dripping with steel.

" Kaka-sensei's right, you're always a bother to us, you goddamn IDIOT!" Sakura spat while Sasuke sniffed disdainfully. Naruto clenched his fist until he drew blood. It wasn't fair. Why was it always him? He had to go through his entire childhood feeling insignificant. He had made friends, but it seemed that they were just an illusion. It was too cruel. In the very minute that his team had looked at him with deceitful eyes, Naruto felt his world shatter.

"All right then. That's it. If you don't want me, I'll go." Naruto turned around, tears brimming from cerulean eyes, and dragged his feet away from the bridge. Spheres of moisture dropped to the ground as Naruto made his way to the waterfalls.

Heartrending sobs racked the small boy's body as Naruto cried out his lonely heart to the heavens. He'd been at the waterfalls for some time now, feeling more lost and alone than he had ever felt before.

"…ruto…"

Naruto perked up his head. Did someone call his name? Seeing no one, he dropped his head onto his arms once more.

"Naru…"

There it was again. Was he hallucinating? Naruto cocked his head.

"Who's there?"

"Naruto."

A figure was slowly accumulating in front of the boy.

"Old…geezer?"

It was Sandaime. But Sandaime looked different. For one, he was floating six inches off the ground. And another, he was translucent.

"Ummm, are you a ghost?" Sandaime reached down and ruffled Naruto's hair. Or so it seemed, for Naruto didn't feel anything.

"Kami-sama gave me permission to talk to you, seeing your plight." Curious, Naruto poked a finger through Sandaime's stomach.

"So you really are a ghost. Uhm, what do you need with me?" Sandaime smiled gently.

"It appears that you are once again alone. I know it is hard, Naruto, but you must continue to hope." Naruto's eyes drooped.

"But no one cares anymore."

"I care. Tsunade cares. Jiraiya cares. Iruka cares. But there is someone out there that will give their whole heart and soul for you. You just have to find out for yourself." Naruto was stunned.

"Who is it?" Sandaime shook his head.

"That you must discover for yourself, young one. But before I go, I will reward you for your efforts so far."

"An All-You-Can-Eat Ichiraku ramen pass?" Naruto looked hopeful. Sandaime roared with laugher.

"No, young one. Now watch." Sandaime crossed his hands and formed a seal. A glow appeared in the air, then disappeared to reveal a bright spinning jewel. It was an amethyst, but unlike any amethyst Naruto had ever seen. This one was a deep purple that gave off hues of deep aqua in its inner workings, and shot through with gold.

"Wowwww……it's so preeettttyyy…"

"Put it on your forehead, my boy." Naruto plucked the jewel from the air, removed his forehead protector, and gingerly placed it in the middle of his forehead. Instantly a surge of power ran through the boy, and several fiery red-orange seals formed from either side of his forehead to connect to the jewel.

"This is the sacred Jewel of Fire, a powerful talisman to aide you with your growth. The past Kages have kept this jewel safe for generations upon generations, but the jewel seems drawn to you, so you shall wield it for the remainder of your life. Now, you can communicate with the Kyuubi, can you not?" Naruto gaped.

"How'd you know about that?"

"Jiraiya told me. The Kyuubi shall teach you about utilizing this jewel. And believe me, Naruto, you will grow to be quite strong." Sandaime's image flickered.

"MATTE! Where are you going?" Sandaime turned around.

"I only have a limited time to show myself to you, but I will be back for regular checkups. Ja ne, Naruto. Make me proud." And with that, Sandaime disappeared.

So what do you think? Pray tell!

Silver-eyed Hyuuga (cuz I wuv Neji)


	2. A Whirpool of Emotions

I promised in my summary that my story would have Nejinaru, right? The first chappy didn't have much Nejinaru, so my deepest apologies for that. However, I make it up to you psycho yaoi fans in this chappy. Lotsa fluff and Nejinaru, cuz I love the pairing and frankly, we don't get a lot of Nejinaru fics.

To all of my reviewers: Thank you sooooo much! I admit, this is my VERY FIRST FIC! You made me feel so much at home...sniff...

To Clow Angel: I hate Sakura too...she definitely will pay.

Chapter 2: A Whirpool of Emotions

Naruto stared, quite stunned by the meeting. Wow. That was some ghost. Oh well. Might as well make the best of it. He rubbed the jewel on his forehead. Very interesting indeed.

"Oi, Gaki. Come down so I can talk to you." A deep voice rumbled inside Naruto's subconscious.

"Alright. I'm coming." And Naruto found himself being drawn into the seal.

He landed with a splash in the water and made his way toward the Kyuubi. After dodging the claws (" Oi, kuso kitsune. Claw at me again and I'll paint these walls pink!"), Naruto took a seat near the walls of the gate.

"Now, kit. We shall start your training. First of all, focus your chakra into the seal." Naruto did so, and felt the seal growing hot.

"Aim the seal at the wall over there and direct your chakra into the jewel." Naruto obeyed, and blasted a huge crater in said wall.

"Wow. That was cooool!" Kyuubi smiled.

"Well, that was a start. With this jewel, you can summon seven legendary glaives, two swords, and the Illusion Kunai which will be of great use. The seven glaives are as follows: Silence Glaive, Fire Glaive, Water Glaive, Wind Glaive, Lightning Glaive, Earth Glaive, and Metal Glaive. The two swords are for you to name, but one controls the supernatural elements such as telepathy and telekinesis and the other controls the natural elements. The Illusion Kunai is for you to discover on your own, for even I do not know the full extent of it's powers. Now lets begin your training….."

Neji sighed. His training was off. And this time it wasn't due to Lee or Tenten. No, the cause of this little distraction was a certain fiery-spirited blonde. Neji knew this, yet he couldn't do anything about it. It was irritating in a good sort of way. Training with this little hindrance could result in something drastic, so Neji decided to quit for the day and just daydream. He flopped onto the mossy forest floor and began to relive the day when he'd just woken up in the hospital from his battle with Kidoumaru.

Flashback

Neji stirred, a frown marring his elegant features, and cracked open an eye. He briefly observed the white-washed walls of the hospital ward, and closed his eye. Then, thinking it was high time he woke up, he opened both eyes, only to see a blonde-haired boy at his bedside.

Naruto looked serenely radiant in his mended state, and with the sun at his back and a dazzling smile on his face, he looked like a fallen angel.

"Ne, Neji, you finally woke up! Do you feel better?"

Naruto cocked his head to one side, and in doing so, the sun had caught his eyes and illuminated them to such a degree that his eyes had looked like fire sapphires and his hair like finely spun gold.

In that very moment, brief as it was, Neji was caught in a whirlpool of emotions, so frightening and new; they shocked him enough to stain his normally pale cheeks as subtle red. His head was spinning and his chest hurt, but it was a pleasant hurt instead of hurting like a wound. Even so, Neji couldn't help flinching, and Naruto, being his usual naïve self, mistook Neji's crisis as his shoulder wound reopening and bent over Neji to adjust his bandages.

Leaving Neji with a noseful of blonde spiky locks.

Unconsciously, Neji inhaled a fair amount of the heavenly stuff (why he did so would forever puzzle him) and he noticed that Naruto's hair smelled like…smelled like…. strawberries? He was expecting ramen; after all, the blonde consumed so much, Neji would have though Naruto would've begun to sweat ramen, but here he was, nose buried in Naruto's hair (thankfully, Naruto was oblivious to all this nuzzling and chatting about "taking better care of yourself, Neji, jeez, I was worried…" which made Neji blush shades of red never seen before) justifying that Naruto's hair really did smell like strawberries.

And raspberries. And blueberries, and blackberries, and boysenberries and flowers and chocolate and soap and mint and herbs and just a touch of earthy, foresty scent that sent Neji into the nostalgic throes of bliss.

"Ano sa, Ano sa, Neji? Daijoubu?"

"Hai, hai, Naruto, I'm fine." Although Neji was far from fine (emotionally), he didn't want his blonde to worry. Hold on. Rewind. Play. Did he just say HIS blonde? Oh yes. Yes he did. But any further musings over what that meant were erased when Naruto leaned over to Neji and peered into his eyes. God, those eyes were so damn intense when Naruto stared. Neji tried desperately to control himself, but this task was nothing short of rocket science seeing that Naruto's nose was scant millimeters away from his own, their breaths mingling, and their foreheads touching.

Not to mention Naruto's hand on Neji's hip, the other on his shoulder, and his nees on either side of Neji's thighs. The temperature level was enough to rival a hot spring.

"Ne ne ne ne. Neji?" Naruto widened his eyes, intensified his gaze, and leaned even closer. How he managed not to kiss the Hyuuga was a wonderment. Poor Neji uttered a few gasps and garbled sounds until he squeezed out a "Yes?"

"Your eyes. Do people ever find them weird or think that you're blind?" Normally, Neji would give the person asking the aforementioned question the Hyuuga Death Glare (woe betide the poor sap), but in his current emotional crisis, Neji could only blush.

"U-um, no, be-because th-they already u-uhm, er, know about th-the H-Hyuuga clan, after all, i-it is the m-most noble ada-aba-advanced buh-bloodline limit in the v-vi-villiage." Curse his lack of ability to speak. He would have a long, if not painful and extensive talk with his vocal cords assuming he lived through this experience.

"Oh." Naruto flopped onto Neji completely, head on his chest and legs sprawled on the other boy's lower torso.

"Uhm, Naruto?"

"Mmm?" Naruto snuggled into Neji's chest and murmured something about "warm and fuzzy" (Increase previously mentioned blush twentyfold and you have one extremely uncomfortable Hyuuga).

"Your whiskers. Does anyone remark about those?" Even Naruto's hair seemed to droop.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"No…" Naruto unconsciously clung closer to Neji. "They already know."

"I don't."

"You shouldn't."

"Why not?" Naruto sighed and played with a strand of Neji's hair, flicking it and rubbing his cheek against its silky feel (Neji mentally vowed never to wash that strand of hair again).

"Just as your curse seal bears a story, so do my whiskers." Neji frowned.

"I told you my story. Why can't you tell yours?"

"Secret." Neji felt the blonde's lithe body tense up. He sighed and tilted Naruto's chin towards his face. What he saw shocked him to no end. Naruto's eyes were filled with sadness, loneliness, angst, and a river of emotions that seemed to go straight to Neji's soul. Neji was thoroughly confused. What had happened to this boy to make his eyes so dead? The Hyuuga tilted Naruto's head even farther up and rested his forehead on the blonde's corresponding counterpart.

"Naruto. No matter how bad your past was, I will never consider you anything else but my teammate and friend."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Naruto smiled sadly.

"Alright." He began pulling up his shirt.

"Na-Naruto, what—?" As much as Neji enjoyed the view of Naruto's finely toned stomach, now wasn't really the time…

"Shhh." Naruto placed a finger on Neji's lips (blush) and made a seal. As he channeled his chakra, a strange tattoo began appearing on his stomach. Neji peered closely at the mark.

"What's that?" Naruto's gaze held a fierce pride, but at the same time seemed sad.

"This ruined my life from the day I was born, and yet, if I didn't have this, I would never have had my dream of becoming Hokage, nor my strength I have now." Opalescent eyes widened.

"What do you mean?"

"Thirteen years ago, a nine-tailed demon fox attacked the village." Neji raised an elegant eyebrow. The Kyuubi? Why was Naruto bringing that up now?

"Do you know what happened to the fox?" Naruto asked. Neji vaguely remembered the tale his father had told him.

"The fox was killed." Naruto shook his head.

"No. It was sealed away in the body of an infant boy. I'll give you three guesses as to who the lucky bastard was." Neji gasped.

"No. Not you?"

"Yes. And because it was me, the villagers saw me as the fox, and not Naruto. That was why they hated me, why they tortured me, why they took away every amount of happiness I had." Naruto spat. Neji felt wave upon wave of sympathy, pity, and remorse. Naruto's past made his own seem so selfish. He had a father and relatives while Naruto had no one at all.

So thinking, Neji pulled the blonde into his arms, cradling the small body. Naruto clung to Neji in silence, both boys sharing a deep level of understanding and sympathy for one another.

End Flashback

Naruto was beat. Kyuubi's cell no longer had any visible structure save for the gate; everything else had been destroyed due to training. He sighed and leaned against the gate, panting and wheezing. So far, he'd managed to master the full extent of the jewel's destructive power, five of the seven glaives, one sword, and half the power of the Illusion Kunai. It was tiring, but he was quite proud of himself. Kyuubi was as well. In fact, the fox gave him a giant scroll containing all the Kuchiyose summons, animal and demon alike, for a reward. But now he was tired and needed rest. The great fox wrapped a tail around the boy and nuzzled him with his nose.

"You've done well, kit. Now rest. You'll be able to train tomorrow." Naruto yawned sleepily and curled up into Kyuubi, snuggling into the soft warm fur.

The Next Day

Naruto found himself in the forest, sprawled messily against the roots of a tree. Oh. He was in the forest. He remembered now. Kyuubi'd been training him. So he made progress. Why not test it on a fellow teammate? Naruto extended his sixth sense to reveal any familiar chakra signatures. He caught one not too far away from where he sat. Apparently it belonged to Hyuuga Neji. How convenient. It would be interesting to test his results against those of the genius. So the kit bounced away toward the Hyuuga, flying gracefully through the trees.

Neji moaned and rubbed his eyes tiredly. Where was he? Oh yes. He fell asleep while thinking about a certain blonde. He sat up and was about to return home when he felt a familiar presence making its way toward him at a fair pace. Well speak of the devil. Neji activated his Byakugan just to make sure. Yup, it was the blonde all right.

He prepared to meet Naruto head on when Naruto suddenly disappeared. What? Kage Bunshin? Too late, Neji sensed the real Naruto, and got glomped as the result. The next thing he knew, he was sprawled on the ground while Naruto bounced happily on his stomach.

"Ne ne Neji. I was looking for you." A scant rose color stained the cheeks of the Hyuuga.

"Ya wanna train? Please? Pwetty pweeze?" And Naruto scrunched his face into a puppy look so cute that even Itachi would have melted at first sight. Neji promptly turned into a puddle of goo.

"All right, all right."

"YAAAAYYYYY!" Naruto grinned and did the most unexpected thing ever in the existence of unexpected things.

Naruto leaned over and kissed Neji on the forehead.

O-kay. Neji blushed shades of red so vibrant that any artist would've crawled over a bed of staples to possess such colors. Well. The Hyuuga genius was utterly shocked. Naruto kissed him because of his agreeing to TRAIN?

It was then that Neji took a close look at Naruto. He seemed different. For one, he was wearing his forehead protector on his neck. And for another….there seemed to be an odd crystal on his forehead with seals interlacing it on either side of Naruto's brow.

"Naruto, what's with the crystal on your forehead?" Naruto smiled secretly.

"That is for me to know, and for you to find out when we train. Hence the reason I asked you."

Neji arched a finely shaped eyebrow. Well this would be an interesting training session. He got into the stance for Jyuuken.

"Well then. Come." Naruto charged, and a split second before he got to Neji, he disappeared.

"What?" Neji turned around to find Naruto coming at him from the left. Neji dodged him and smirked. The smirk decided it favored Naruto when he felt a sharp pain across his cheek and a corresponding boom from behind him. Neji leapt back and looked across the clearing. What he saw completely stunned him

"What happened?"

An entire side of the training area had been blown to bits. And what was scarier still, there was absolutely no debris. It was like the area had been molecularly destroyed. Amazing. Neji put a hand to his cheek and stroked it gingerly. He took a good look at his hand. Blood was streaked across the fingers.

"Naruto…what?" Naruto grinned widely and pointed to the crystal on his head.

"Result of my training. Watch." And Naruto blasted another portion of the forest to kingdom come. Neji re-hinged his jaw and rubbed his eyes.

"Naruto. You can destroy THAT MUCH of the forest down to the MOLECULAR level with just ONE BLAST?" Naruto grinned.

"Yup. But don't worry. I won't use it on my teammates or anyone I trust. You can take my word for granted." Neji relaxed. After all, Naruto never went back on his word.

"Now I must repair all this damage."

Naruto formed a seal, then extended his palm. A rod of chakra appeared in his hand and solidified into some kind of intricately woven staff with a blade at the end. Naruto sent a blast of energy into the ground, and trees sprouted up right and left until the forest looked untouched.

"Where did you learn THAT?" Neji managed to gasp.

"You know about Kyuubi, right? Well he taught me how to utilize all this power. And as to where I got the jewel…" Naruto proceeded in telling Neji about his rendezvous with Sandaime. Neji nodded.

"You can talk to Kyuubi?"

"Yup! He's not a bad conversationalist, and a great listener! He also heightened my senses a great deal, so he's a much better trainer than Kaka-sensei." (Kyuubi folds his arms and nods his head.)

"Woww…." Neji was astonished. All of a sudden, Naruto boinged his way over to Neji, grabbed him by the hand, and started pulling him.

"Naruto, what…?"

"C'mon, Neji, I have a surprise for you!" And with that, the kitsune dragged Neji out of the forest and toward the main village.

Five minutes later, Naruto and Neji stood at the entrance to the hot springs. Neji's eyes widened.

"Holy shit! Naruto, this is the most expensive hot spring resort in Konoha!" Naruto smiled slyly, and held up two passes to the hot springs. Neji's eyes resembled, quite literally, dinner plates.

"WHERE THE HELL DIDYOU GET THOSE?" Naruto grinned evilly and pointed toward the man at the desk.

"He's a pervert, and I happen to have a special technique up my sleeve called Sexy No Jutsu…" Naruto trailed off, still smirking like crazy. Neji started smirking like crazy as well.

"Shall we?"

"After you."

So the duo entered the private hot springs. And simultaneously, both boys' jaws dropped.

"Damn…" Neji could see why this was THE most expensive hot spring resort in Konoha. Tropical plants grew all along quartz rocks shot with marble, and a waterfall fed the hot springs. Rose petals floated along the water while an enticing scent rose from the steamy water. To spend time with Naruto in such an atmosphere…thoughts were revolving in Neji's head, three-quarters of which were rated NC-23, the last quarter still stunned at the sheer luxury of the hot spring.

"Shall we get to it then?" Naruto unzipped his jacket and took off his shirt. Instantly, Neji turned around, masking the flaming blush and distinct nosebleed he seemed to have accumulated. The next time he turned around, Naruto was dressed only in a towel around his waist.

"My turn." Neji loosed his hair and stripped himself, wrapping a towel around his own waist. Naruto gasped. Neji looked so…hot….with his hair down. Downright sexy. Which was probably why Neji kept it tied back most of the time. Fangirls really were annoying. The pair slipped into the relaxing hot water , each letting out an audible sigh as the water calmed their nerves.

"Neji, Neji, Neji! Can I wash your hair?" Neji looked confused.

"Wash my hair? But we don't have any soap." Naruto grinned and held up a bar.

"Says who?" Neji smiled and gave in.

"All right, all right." Naruto made his way over to one of the plants around the hot spring and plucked the leaves. He isolated a small section of the hot spring water using the rocks, and shaved curls of soap and plant into the makeshift basin. Again, Naruto summoned a rod of chakra, this time taking the shape of a deep red rod with a ruby in the handle, and a fiery red-orange blade with black flames embossed into the blade. Naruto stuck the tip of the blade into the basin and heated the water to a low boil. Neji stared curiously.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" An enticing scent arose from the basin.

"Mint works best if you wanna make shampoo." Naruto grinned, then gathered some "shampoo" and started lathering Neji's hair.

Gentle, he was so gentle. Neji had never felt anyone take such care and effort over just a simple task of washing hair. And what was more, Neji's hair was snarled into all sorts of knotballs from the training, but Naruto only gently picked them out one by one. Hell yeah, this was the life.

See, see? NEJINARU! I always keep my promises!


	3. Confessions

I'm BAAAAACKKKK! Author slides in on a silver skateboard. Just kidding. New chapter, with lotsa Nejinaru and fluff! Warning, MAJOR FLUFF! Hell ya!

To all my reviewers: ThankyouthankyouthankyouThankyouthankyouthankyou so veryvery much cuz you all make me feel so..so...loved. Waaaahaaaahaaa... (Neji hands me a tissue)...sob...thanks...anyway, for those of you sadists out there who want to see Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi pay for what they did to poor wittle Naru-chan, don't worry cuz I'M A SADIST TOO! Mwahahahahahahaha...cough cough... sorry. (Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi cower in fear) Right now I'm centered on developing Neji's relationship with Naru, so that will have to wait. But I promise that THEY WILL PAY! Now on with the story!

Chapter 3: Confessions

SPLOOSH!

"Hey! Neji-baka, what was that for?" Neji grinned and splashed Naruto with more water.

"Why you…" Naruto smiled evilly, and suddenly disappeared. Neji looked around cautiously. When Naruto didn't come to the surface after a period of time, Neji began to fret.

"Naruto, this isn't funny." Suddenly a shadow fell overhead. Neji looked up just in time to get a faceful of fox-child.

KERSPLOOSH

"Itai…" Having a person fall on top of one from six feet up doesn't do well on one's nerves and pain tolerance. As Neji had the privilege of discovering. He wrestled with the blonde for a few minutes underwater before the water sent both of them scrambling for oxygen above surface. The pair clamored for air, completely forgetting they were still entangled.

Which left them a little too close for comfort.

And it didn't help that both boys were half naked and dripping wet.

Curse those damned teenage hormones.

Time seemed to take a breather while the duo stared into each other's eyes. Then Neji completely surprised Naruto and himself by leaning up and brushing his lips against Naruto's forehead, giving it one last lick before breaking apart from the other.

Naruto was stunned. Mr. Ice Creamsicle Hyuuga giving him a KISS! Weeelllll. The world has come to an end, Jiraiya admitted he was gay, and Orochimaru just hugged someone. But any further musings were erased when Neji spoke.

"Payback time." Naruto blushed. And eeped. The hot springs were getting a li-ttle too hot.

"Wanna get out now, Neji?" Neji frowned.

"But since this is the only pass we have and passes are so rare, shouldn't we enjoy it a little longer?" Naruto laughed.

"Who said this was the ONLY pass we had?" And the kitsune held up thirty more passes. Neji choked and coughed frantically.

"WHERE IN THE SEVEN POINT FIVE HELLS DID YOU GET THOSE!" Naruto giggled madly.

"Whoever invented the Xerox machine should get an everlasting supply of Ramen." Neji gasped, then grinned evilly.

"You're not as dumb as we assumed."

Neji eeped as well and waded out of the hot springs. The boys strolled out of the resort and passed the owner (who was currently hyperventilating on the floor; Naruto took out a red marker and drew lips on the man while Neji snickered) before making their way down the streets of Konoha. All of a sudden, Naruto paused and sniffed the air.

"What?" Naruto smiled.

"The old hag is beating up the Ero-Sennin. Lets go to the Hokage Tower and see!" Naruto bobbed happily on the tips of his toes, bright azure eyes sparkling.

"How did you know?"

"Remember? Training with Kyuubi heightened my senses! I can smell Ero-Sennin's discomfort! Well, what are we waiting for? Lets go!" And with that, Naruto dragged the Hyuuga toward the Hokage tower.

Once there, they narrowly dodged Tsunade's desk and watched Tsunade decorate her wall with another Ero-Sennin shaped hole.

"IF I **_EVER_** CATCH YOU LOOKING DOWN MY SHIRT AGAIN, I WILL HAVE GAI DISPLAY HIMSELF TO YOU IN NOTHING BUT A THONG, **_DO YOU UNDERSTAND?_**"

Jiraiya squeaked and ran for dear life. Tsunade sighed, repaired her wall, retrieved her desk from its unruly perch on a nearby tree, and slumped in her chair, rubbing her temples in a slow circular manner.

What was left of Naruto's control dissipated, and he burst into laughter, Neji joining in as well. Tsunade looked up.

"Oh, hello. What are you here for?" Tsunade questioned curiously. Naruto laughed.

"Just visiting. I haven't seen my nee-chan for a long time." Neji mouthed "nee-chan?" and Naruto mouthed back "long story". Just then the door opened and yours truly, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi strolled in. Naruto visibly wilted.

"Tsunade-sama. The mission was successfully accomplished." Tsunade looked up.

"Arigato. You may go now. But I have a question. I had recommended Naruto as part of your team, yet you didn't take him with you. Why is that?" Kakashi looked sheepish.

"Well, Naruto…simply doesn't posses the stealth skills required for the mission. I mean you have to admit that his jumpsuit would stand out anywhere, and he is much too impatient, loud, and obnoxious, wouldn't you say?"

"Yeah," Sakura chimed in. "That baka doesn't even deserve to be a ninja. He's just a hindrance, a bother, a pest, and nothing more. Now Sasuke-kun, on the other hand…" And Sakura went on to list all of Sasuke's good qualities while Sasuke just "Hn"-ed.

Neji was utterly disgusted. To treat a team member this was unforgivable. He could feel his Byakugan stirring with rage. He snuck a peek at Naruto to see how he would react.

Normally brilliant shining clear eyes had turned a shade of smoky blue, and brimming with tears. Naruto bit down hard on his lip to staunch the salty moisture. His entire body had gone rigid with sadness, loneliness, and anger. And without a backward look, the fox-child leapt out the window.

"Naruto!" Neji cried desperately to the kitsune, but Naruto paid no heed, jumping blindly off the rooftops to God-knows-where. Neji turned furiously on the offending trio, steel dripping from every word and every gaze.

"You cowards are nothing but trash, nothing but pitiful fools who don't bear any feelings whatsoever. Naruto has far more capacity than you will EVER achieve. You think you're so cool, berating a boy who has suffered far more than you shall ever feel? Naruto is indeed stronger than all of you combined. He has never given up, never wavered in his quest for happiness even after all the hardships he has endured during his life. And what's more, he is the most innocent, kind, gentle, pure, and overall amazing boy that has ever walked the streets of Konoha, yet you see him as nothing but a failure. Are you so blind? You are just jealous of him, jealous pieces of shit that don't deserve to be looked upon."

And with that, the Hyuuga genius left in search of a heartbroken boy.

Kakashi looked ashamed, Sakura regretful, and Sasuke sheepish. Tsunade turned a full on death glare at the three.

"You heard what he said. Now think about it. If I ever get the wind of you rejecting Naruto, or even insulting him again, I will demote you to lowly trash collectors and imprison you for five years. Do you understand? And yes, even you, Kakashi."

Tsunade was seething. The team mumbled a "yes" and shuffled meekly out of the room.

"Naruto! Naruto! Naruto, where are you?" Neji cried out for the boy. Oh screw this.

"Byakugan!" A familiar red signature appeared on a hill in the woods.

"Good." Neji leapt towards the red chakra. He made his way towards the boy and was about five yards away when he stopped. And listened. Naruto was….singing? Damn, he had a good voice. A VERY good voice. His voice seemed to penetrate Neji's soul, working its way into crevices of Neji that he didn't know existed.

The lilting melody of the song brought tears to Neji's eyes. It was a soothing melody, but with Naruto singing it in his state of mind, it had a heartrending haunting quality to it, almost unearthly sounding. Neji crumbled within.

Naruto sung the last few notes, then lapsed into silence altogether. Whimpers emitted from the blonde kitsune. Neji decided to make himself known and quietly came up to the blonde.

"N-Neji?" Naruto's voice was sad. Neji felt a wave of anger, remorse, and empathy. Naruto looked more broken than he ever was before. Neji sat down next to the blonde and stroked his hair gently.

"Naruto…are you ok?" Naruto snorted.

"Does it look like I'm ok?" Bad question. On Neji's part. Neji sighed and engulfed his fingers completely with blond spiky locks. They were soft, so soft, almost made of air.

"Naruto. What your team did to you today was unforgivable. But no matter what happens, I'm here for you." Naruto smiled sadly and caught Neji's silver eyes with his own. Neji melted. Gone were the feelings of deep solitude and sadness. Naruto's eyes radiated such joy that it was almost tangible. Neji smiled, a genuine smile.

It was then that Naruto flung himself into Neji's arms and sobbed out enough tears to rival Niagara Falls. Neji held the boy, rocking him gently back and forth, whispering words of encouragement to Naruto. After a long period of time, Naruto stopped crying and the two just sat there in silence.

"Neji?"

"Hmm?"

"Arigato."

"S'okay." Silence ensued.

"Naruto." This was more of a request than a question. Naruto looked up, eyes shimmering with gratitude. Neji gently traced over the whiskers on Naruto, stroking them slowly, then ran his thumb and forefinger down the blonde's jawline. Licking a few renegade tears off of Naruto's cheek, Neji bent down and whispered,

"My kitsune."

And with that, Neji leaned the rest of the way and caught Naruto's lips with his own.

"Mmff.." Naruto squirmed a bit, but settled down and gave in to the kiss as Neji silenced him with a nibble. The kiss took on a hungry, lustful quality when Naruto leaned into Neji, licking the other (Neji tasted like shrimp and lemons) while Neji deepened the kiss by delving into the blonde's mouth with as much passion as he could muster.

Entrance was demanded as Neji slid his tongue slowly around Naruto's lower lip. Access was granted, and Naruto opened his mouth. Neji gently lapped at the other's tongue, then stiffened his own and slid it gently across the roof of Naruto's mouth, earning a low, seductive moan from the other.

All right. Neji couldn't always be in control. Naruto fought his way to dominance and began exploring all crevices of Neji's mouth in return. As he touched and caressed a particularly sensitive spot, Neji let out a low, throaty moan, half-lidded eyes clouded with love and just a hint of lust. After what seemed like an eternity, the boys broke the kiss and gasped for air. Naruto leaned up and whispered into Neji's ear.

"Aisheteru, Neji-koi." Neji smirked. Neji-koi? Well.

"I love you too, Naruto."

At that moment, a bright glow illuminated the clearing, disappearing only to leave a bright spinning crystal in the air. This one was a topaz, only it emitted strange red flashes of light, and was shot through with silver.

"What.." Naruto and Neji gasped. A figure began to appear.

"Naruto. It seems that you have finally found your precious person." Naruto gawked.

"Old geezer? You're back again?" Sandaime chuckled.

"Didn't I tell you I'd be checking up on you? Now, Hyuuga Neji. Put that crystal on the center of your forehead." Neji reached up, plucked the crystal out of the air, and loosed his bandages on his forehead.

"But what about my curse seal?" Sandaime chuckled.

"Your curse seal shall disappear once the crystal is utilized." Neji grinned happily.

"Thank you, Hokage-Sama." Neji bowed, then placed the crystal on his forehead.

A shocking surge of energy coursed through the Hyuuga before seals like Naruto's own appeared on his forehead.

"This crystal binds you to Naruto, and shall bind him to you. You will still have your own chakra system, but can give some to Naruto if he ever needs any. The crystal has increased your chakra by one hundred times, as it did to Naruto. It also lets you summon seven Sickles, each sickle different in its form. These sickles, when combined with the seven Glaives, shall prove to be very effective, but only when they work together. You may use them as you wish."

And with that, Sandaime began to disappear.

"Oh yes, I almost forgot. Kyuubi, who resides in Naruto, shall help you with your training." Sandaime smiled.

"Well then, Ja ne, you two, and good luck." Sandaime melted away into nothingness. Neji rubbed his eyes and pinched himself.

"That was interesting." He rubbed the jewel on his forehead dazedly. Naruto smiled, then stretched and yawned. Neji smiled as well. Naruto looked so damn cute when he yawned.

"Betcha I can do better." Neji yawned as well, stretching his jaw to the limit.

"Pfft. That was nothing." And Naruto yawned so wide, his jaw cracked. Five minutes later, both boys were sprawled on the ground, utterly exhausted.

"I think one of us should've quit."

Neji rolled over and smiled fondly at his kitsune. Naruto stared up at the night sky, eyes reflecting the stars overhead. The pair lapsed into a comfortable silence, just enjoying each other's company and the view of the sky. Presently, Neji spoke softly.

"Mmm. Naruto?"

"Ya?"

"You wanna come over and spend the night at my house? Beds are so much softer than grass." Naruto grinned.

"You may be wrong."

"I guess I could be. So what do you say?"

"Ok then. As long as you promise not to do anything perverted to me while I'm sleeping." Neji smirked devilishly.

"Great idea, thanks Naruto. I hadn't thought about that one before." Naruto punched him playfully, then hopped to his feet and made a mad dash towards the Hyuuga mansion, Neji in hot pursuit.

"Hey, it's my house, I get to lead!" Naruto turned around and stuck out his tongue.

"Says who?" And the blonde dashed wildly towards the Hyuuga mansion. Neji chuckled and followed close behind.

See, see! More fluff! See ya next time!

Silver-eyed Hyuuga


	4. Mysterious Mission

Howdy, folks! It's MEEEEEEE! Another update (yay) and MORE NejiNaru! I just love that pairing...they look so damn cute together!

For those reviewers who are sadists like me: Sakura and Kakashi WILL get punished. That's for sure. I'm kinda debating on Sasuke tho, cuz he didn't actually join in the taunting. **VERY VERY IMPORTANT!** I need you to vote on whether Sasuke gets punished or not. Send your votes in your next reviews plz. You don't have to vote, but I'd sure like it if you do.

To my reviewers in general: I'm so greatly indebted to you. You made me feel that I can actually write something worth reading. Thankyouthankyouthankyou for all your support and love. Sniff sniff... I don't deserve this...sob...HOOOONKKKK (me blowing nose) now, ON WITH THE STORY!

Chapter 4: Mysterious Mission

At the Hyuuga Mansion

"Shee-it…." The Hyuuga mansion was more like a castle than a mansion. Towers and intricate designs and architecture were surrounded by fountains, massive gardens, and riches of all kinds.

"You actually LIVE in this?" Naruto gawked openly.

"Baka, the rest of the Branch family and the Main family also live in here. Besides, just because it's rich doesn't mean it feels like home. It's too cold and formal, and requires a lot of dusting." Naruto giggled.

"C'mon." Neji dragged the blonde to his bedroom.

"Umm, Neji?"

"Mmm?"

"I didn't bring along my pajamas." Neji laughed.

"You can borrow a pair of mine."

"Really?"

"Sure."

"Thanks!" Naruto leaned up and kissed Neji briefly (blush) before rummaging through the Hyuuga's clothes.

"Here we go." Naruto held up a loose white shirt and pants.

"Can I use the bathroom?

"Sure." Naruto changed, then bobbed his way over to Neji's bed and flopped down.

"Mmmmmmmm." Neji's bed sure was soft. The Hyuuga made his way over and lay down beside the blonde.

"Oyasumi, Naru-chan."

"Oyasumi, Neji-koi."

The Next Day

Footsteps were heard as Hanabi made her way to Neji's room. She knocked quietly, then opened the door.

"Neji-san, Hiashi-sama requests your pre—" Hanabi stopped in mid sentence, gaping at the other in Neji's bed. And the fact that the other had his arms wrapped around Neji's waist and that Neji was embracing the other as well. Hanabi promptly keeled over from the bloody nose. Neji cracked open an eye, observing the hyperventilating Hanabi, and buried his nose in Naruto's neck, nuzzling him slightly before holding him closer.

"Ramen-flavored Neji…"

Ramen flavored Neji? Well this was a new one. Neji stored this away as an idea. He knew what he would do. He would deprive Naruto of ramen for three days (assuming he lived that long without his favorite food), soak himself thoroughly in a ramen bath, and present himself to Naruto. Just another way to get the blonde to lick him all over. Neji grinned evilly.

Naruto leaned up and gave Neji a long, slow, wet, sticky, passionate kiss, licking and nibbling the Hyuuga's bottom lip, before trailing his kisses down Neji's jawline and attacking his neck. Neji arched his back and pressed both hands to the back of Naruto's head, moaning seductively all the while.

"God…oh god…Naruto!"

Once Naruto got to the crook of Neji's neck, he bit down hard drawing blood, while fluttering his eyelashes against Neji's creamy white skin. The combination of sweet pain and pleasure was more than Neji could bear.

"Naruto!" Neji screamed to the heavens. Naruto paused to lick some blood off his lips. He bent and lowered his lips to Neji's neck once more, stopping only scant millimeters off of the enticing skin. Neji could feel the boy's breath on his neck and whimpered softly, begging for more. Naruto rose up and kissed the Hyuuga.

"No more now," he murmured against Neji's lips.

"W-why not?" Neji was thoroughly disappointed.

"Because…" Naruto suddenly turned from a passionate lover into his normal self.

"I'm HUNGRY!" Neji pouted.

"You already ate enough of me just now."

"But I'm HUNGRY!"

Neji sighed, then led Naruto to one of the many kitchens.

"Then take your pick."

"Do you have ramen?" Neji held up the last packet.

"Here." And the blonde started wildly cooking and preparing said ramen. Neji smiled, then slipped softly away.

"Hiashi-sama. You requested me?" Hiashi looked up, a stern gaze marring his features.

"I have an assignment for you. It concerns combining part of Naruto's team with yours. You, Sakura, Sasuke, Naruto, and Tenten shall be going on a mission to dispose of a few renegade cloud ninja that have threatened Konoha. These cloud nin are ranked from Chuunin to Jounin, but Hokage and I believe that you can take them on. You are to leave immediately."

"Hai, Hiashi-sama." Neji bowed and turned to leave when Hiashi stopped him.

"By the way, what is that object on your forehead?" Neji rubbed his crystal slowly, then shrugged.

"A result of training." Hiashi raised an eyebrow quizzically. The jewel gleamed with a mysterious power. Power rivaling even his. Very intriguing indeed.

"Very well then. You may go."

Neji quietly let himself out, then ambled over to the kitchen towards his blonde haired lover. He hardly opened the kitchen door when he was hit by the most enticing smells ever. When he looked toward the table and the stove, he gasped.

Plates upon plates of gourmet dishes were piled on top of each other. And the blonde was cooking madly, tasting this and stirring that, looking adorably cute in a chef's hat and apron. Upon Neji's arrival, Naruto turned around, two saucepans and a ladle in hand.

"Hi Neji!" Neji gaped, jaw dangling freely.

"Naruto…I DIDN'T KNOW YOU COULD COOK!" Naruto grinned foxily.

"Yeah, I taught myself how, since I lived alone for a long time." And the blonde went on stirring and tasting.

"Eat up, Neji, they're all for you."

"Th-thanks." And Neji dazedly snapped apart his chopsticks and started in on his food. He had barely eaten the first bite when he gasped, shocked. Naruto's eel sushi was nothing short of absolutely delicious. Tangy, spicy, yet satisfying, Naruto could surpass all the professionals alone.

"Naruto! This is EXCELLENT!"

"Thanks! Now hurry and eat, we have a mission."

Neji finished his meal, then shoved his dishes in the dishwasher. Naruto came up from behind and wrapped his arms around Neji, rocking lightly back and forth (moan) before he turned Neji around and kissed him passionately.

"What was that for?" Neji sighed as they finally came up for air.

"I wanted to taste some of my own cooking. Now lets pack, we have a long way to go. The mission takes at least three days to get to the destination." Naruto bounded into Neji's bedroom and started packing, Neji following suit.

At the Bridge

"Where is that baka?" Sakura fumed and fussed while Tenten looked impassive.

"Neji isn't here either. It's not like him to be late." Sasuke just humphed.

Just then Naruto and Neji made their way up to the bridge.

"Naruto baka! Why are you so damned LATE!" Sakura pounced on Naruto, swinging her fist to give him the white knuckled consequences. But to her surprise, instead of letting himself get hit, Naruto caught Sakura's hand and flung it back at her with a cold glare, so unlike his sunshiny normal ones.

"Get a life, you bitch. And do something about your overlarge forehead." With that, Naruto calmly stuffed his hands in his pockets (trademark Sasuke style) and leaned against the bridge. Neji glared daggers and other sharp pointy objects at Sakura before doing the same.

Sakura gasped dazedly. Had she really changed Naruto that much? He was so…so cold. Almost inhuman, and utterly emotionless. She slumped against the bridge, shock coursing through her body.

Naruto looked at Sakura briefly before opening a mind link with Neji via the crystals.

"_How was that, Neji?" Neji chuckled._

"_I think she'll back down now. I have to admit, you have quite a lot of talent in acting." _

"_Duh, I've been acting "happy" my whole life." _

"_Oh. Sorry. Didn't mean to remind you." Neji apologized. Naruto giggled._

"_Don't worry. And I think I like being happy. Frowning gives you wrinkles." Neji laughed, then closed the link._

"Neji-kun! You're here!" Neji looked up to see Tenten bouncing on the balls of her feet. She stopped, and stared curiously at Neji.

"Why do you have a crystal in the middle of your forehead? And why does Naruto have one too?"

Both Sasuke and Sakura perked up. A crystal on their foreheads? After closer inspection, they concluded that both Neji and Naruto did indeed have a crystal on their foreheads. Sasuke scowled slightly, musing over the new change while Sakura simply looked confused.

"Naruto, what are they for?" Naruto, reverting back to his old self, gave her a foxy grin.

"You'll see." Sakura, feeling she couldn't pry any more out of Naruto, settled for the answer.

"We'd better get going. We have to make it there by sundown." Neji remarked. The others agreed and trekked their way out of Konoha.

Once again, thank you for your reviews and keep 'em coming! I wuv wuv wuv feedback!


	5. Newfound Abilities

Ohayo, minna! Another update of my story! Yay! Waaahhh...nobody voted as of Wednesday Feb. 23 on whether I should punish Sasuke...Oh well. I can wait.

To all my reviewers: Same old, same old, but I'm still eternally grateful!

Chapter 5: Newfound Abilities

Once in the forest, Sasuke read the mission scroll. The Uchiha's eyes widened as he turned the scroll this way and that.

"Sasuke-kun? What is it?" Sakura asked. Sasuke squinted at the scroll.

"It says…." Sakura jittered with anticipation.

"WHAT?"

"Bring Naruto five thousand packs of Ramen?" Tenten, Sakura, and Sasuke glared at Naruto in unison while Neji frantically tried to giggle silently, ending up with the hiccups.

"Hey, it was a joke…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Neji couldn't hold it in anymore and burst out laughing. Tenten glared.

"Now we have to report back to Tsunade-sama to get a different scroll! Naruto, you baka!"

"Now now, that's only a genjutsu. Kai!" The words dissipated and formed a new message.

"It seems the cloud nin are going to attack their own village. Their goal is to kill the Kage, then make off with his sacred scroll. We have to stop them." Sasuke read.

"Oh yes, it seems like they already know we are here to stop them, so I don't think our welcome will be too warm."

Naruto turned and looked at Sasuke intensely, blue eyes boring a hole through the other.

"What is it dobe?" Naruto's gaze became even more intense, making the Uchiha squirm slightly.

"When we battle, I can take care of myself." Sasuke smirked.

"Fine." The group walked along in silence.

"Naruto." Naruto turned and looked at Sasuke.

"What?"

"What purpose does that crystal serve? And why does Hyuuga have one too?" Naruto smiled mysteriously.

"That's for us to know and for you to find out. And believe me, you will find out." Naruto said with an air of finality. Sasuke frowned. That would have to do for the time being. Suddenly Naruto stopped and sniffed the air, looking wary.

"What is it, Naruto?" Neji asked worriedly. Naruto sniffed once more then relaxed.

"Nope. Not the cloud nin. Just some run-of-the-mill bandits. And coming this way." Sakura and Sasuke frowned thoughtfully. How could Naruto's sense of smell suddenly increase so dramatically?

There was a rustle in the bushes, and seven fierce looking men came out.

"_Naruto, do you think they're dangerous?" Neji asked. _Naruto sniffed

"_They are ninja, but they don't seem that strong."_

"_All right. We can take them. After you." _

"_It would be my pleasure."_

"All right you bunch of lowlife midgets. Give us the girls and you won't get hurt."

Naruto smirked.

"We'll take it from here, guys." And with that, Naruto and Neji disappeared. Simultaneously, the team and the thieves gasped. Tenten looked around.

"Where did they go?" Sasuke tried sensing the pair.

"I can't sense them anywhere."

Out of nowhere, a bright purple light and a golden light sped toward the bandits, destroying the clearing completely. The team jumped out of the way, as did the bandits, but three got caught in the blast and were wiped out. Naruto and Neji appeared close behind.

"Give us the girls and you won't get hurt." Naruto mimicked. "Well you got hurt all right. And we're gonna go scot-free."

Both Neji's and Naruto's jewels started glowing. Naruto summoned a white rod with a shimmering quality, engraved with intricate designs of all shades of blue. The blade had a deadly icy quality to it, seemingly shimmering like water, and reflected shades of aqua and turquoise. Naruto smiled. He had wanted to test the Water Glaive for some time now.

Neji closed his eyes and concentrated. He summoned a similar chakra rod, yet this one was shorter, with a moon shaped blade on the end. It pulsed with energy, radiating a dangerous aura. One of the Sickles was about to be put to good use.

"Wanna split them 50-50, Neji?"

"Sure, but I get the ones on the left."

"No, I had dibs, and dibs have precedence!"

"Naruto, I said I would when we wiped out the first three."

"But dibs have…." (Bandits: "Hey, we're not property!")

The boys argued playfully, while the rest of the team just looked on with bemused faces.

"Enough of this! Lets get them!" The bandits rushed at Naruto and Neji. Naruto grasped the Water Glaive and swung it at the nearest two.

"White Icicles of Purity!" Instantly a shower of needle-sharp icicles came raining mercilessly down on the first two men. Naruto slashed downward with the glaive again, and the men were encased in solid ice, pounding angrily at the walls. Naruto summoned chakra to his crystal, then disposed of the men completely. Despite the victory though, Naruto was a little disappointed. After all, it would have been a lot more fun had the men fought back.

Neji quickly dodged a blow from his enemy. The man specialized in chains and a poison-tipped sword and had very good defense, making it difficult for the Hyuuga to get in a blow. Neji parried a sword blow but found that the chains had wrapped themselves around the handle of his Sickle. The bandit grinned maliciously and yanked the Sickle out of Neji's reach.

"What will the poor boy do without his precious little weapon, hmm?" The bandit crooned. Neji smirked and made a few hand seals.

The Sickle jerked wildly in the man's hand.

"What….?" The man desperately tried to control the Sickle, but failed when the weapon gave one final jerk and flew back to Neji.

"You were saying?" Neji said triumphantly. The man visibly shrank with terror.

Neji felt a presence behind him. It was the other bandit. Perfect. He aimed a blast at the one in front of him with his crystal while demolishing the other with his Sickle. Both bandits were no more.

Naruto ran over to the Hyuuga.

"Great job, Neji." Neji grinned and returned the compliment.

Sasuke clenched his fists, Sharingan threatening to awaken. How did the dobe grow so strong? And why didn't the person who trained the dobe train him as well? Sasuke gritted his teeth, body going absolutely rigid with rage and jealousy. The raven-haired youth looked ready to kill.

Sakura was amazed and a little bit scared. Naruto finished off the bandits so quickly. She relaxed a little when she saw the boy give the bandits a proper burial, but still remained wary.

"Neji-kun, shouldn't we stop for the night?" Tenten asked. Neji turned and gazed at Naruto, his look deep and searching.

"Naruto?" Naruto nodded his consent, and a look passed between the two that everyone else couldn't comprehend. Neji smirked, then opened a link with Naruto.

"_Naruto."_

"_What?" Neji began snickering._

"_I forgot my tent." Naruto mouthed a "so?" looking confused. Neji gestured. Naruto's eyes opened wide before he began snickering as well._

"_I see. So you "forgot" your tent, ne?" Naruto began giggling wildly._

"Neji-kun, what's so funny?" Tenten asked. More snickers and giggles. Naruto spoke in a loud voice.

"Why Neji, what_ever_ is the matter?" Naruto asked between laughs.

"Well you see, Naruto, I _forgot my tent."_ Neji managed to choke out. Naruto dissolved into giggles again.

"That is a _serious _problem, Neji, what_ shall_ we do, hmm?" Naruto squeezed out before he fell to the ground in hysterics.

"I _guess I could **share with you."**_ Neji collapsed as well, crying with laughter.

The rest of the team looked dumfounded at the two hysterical boys. Sasuke mouthed "does he always act like this" while thumbing at Neji, and Tenten replied "no" before watching the two boys laugh ("Ow…my ribs…heeheehee..").

"I suppose you _could_ share with me, after all, you don't want to _bunk with the girls_ now do you?" Naruto waggled his eyebrows suggestively. Neji was very near suffocating from lack of air.

"C'mon you, lets get set up." Naruto (literally) pried Neji off the ground, set up their tent, and turned in for the night, wiping his eyes.

Sasuke, Sakura, and Tenten looked at each other and shrugged before turning in as well.

In Naruto's Tent

Both boys looked at each other before dissolving into giggles.

"Oh man, oh MAN, did you see their faces? Neji, that was BRILLIANT! Did you really forget your tent on purpose?" Naruto laughed.

"All the more reason to spend time with my Naru-chan." Neji smiled.

"They don't even know we're together!" Naruto laughed.

"Which is what made it so funny." Neji sniggered wildly. Eventually, the pair calmed down. Neji began stroking Naruto lazily, running his hand over the boy.

Naruto purred (or what seemed like a purr; if not, then it was pretty darn close) happily and arched his back to the rhythm of Neji's stroke. Neji leaned down and kissed the boy, smiling into Naruto's lips. Naruto returned the kiss and the boys stayed intertwined before Neji broke the kiss and began trailing his way down Naruto's neck.

Naruto moaned as Neji attacked his neck, teasing the skin gently with his teeth. Neji licked the skin, and then nibbled his way down Naruto's collarbone. Naruto moaned again, a husky urgent moan, before pressing his hands to Neji's back, rocking back and forth. Neji nipped the boy once on his neck before continuing south.

Naruto started to moan again, but stopped and sniffed the air. Neji, sensing the change in the blonde, stopped his ministrations.

"What is it?" Naruto turned toward Neji.

"Not now."

"Why not?" Naruto sniffed again.

"Sakura, Sasuke, and Tenten are watching our tent."

"Byakugan!" And indeed they were. Neji sighed, muttering something about "nosy little fools" then settled for running his hand lightly through Naruto's hair.

"Sorry though." Naruto apologized.

"S'okay. I still love you. And I'll continue loving you no matter what." Naruto snuggled into the crook of Neji's neck.

" 'Night." And both boys drifted off to sleep.

Bye for now!


	6. Failed Seductions

**WARNING! WARNING! **Sirens go off...just kidding. Those of you who are Sakura fans must NOT read this chapter. DO YOU UNDERSTAND! I REPEAT, THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE SAKURA FANS MUST **_NOT_** READ THIS CHAPTER! IF YOU READ THIS CHAPTER ANYWAY (Those of you who are Sakura fans), I HAVE GIVEN YOU FAIR WARNING; THEREFORE, I WILL **NOT **TOLERATE FLAMES!

For those of you who are Anti-Sakura, hate the girl,or just plain dislike the girl, you are more than welcome to read. If you are one of those extremes who have 56 Sakura voodoo dolls and needles, be my guest to read this chappy. To those of you who already hate Sakura and are a fan of NejiNaru, I guarantee you will come to despise the girl. I already do, cuz I wrote the chappy.

To all my reviewers: Eeep...I'm not too sure whether to put this chappy up or not, cuz I might get some flames...sorry, I just don't like Sakura. She abuses Naruto and I hate that. Even though she did kinda shape up later.

To anyone reading this: If you haven't noticed, the characters can appear OOC.

Chapter Five: Failed Seductions

The Next Day

Naruto yawned widely and sat up, stretching. He looked over at Neji and smiled. Neji looked so very damn cute when he slept. Extremely cute, in fact. Naruto leaned down and kissed the Hyuuga awake.

"Morning." Neji smiled sleepily and returned the kiss.

"Better get out before the rest of them get mad."

The pair stepped out of their tent, only to be greeted by a very angry Sakura.

"Naruto! Just what the hell was so funny last night!" Sakura flew at him with rage that would make Tsunade proud.

Naruto's eyes narrowed into slits. He wouldn't tolerate another second of her treatment.

Sakura felt a sharp pain as something flew past her cheek and demolished the five or so trees behind her back. She turned, witnessing the destruction, and shuddered. She put a hand to her cheek and came away with a fair amount of blood. She looked back at Naruto, trembling with fear. Naruto's crystal was glowing.

"You goddamn bitch, what the hell have I done to deserve this treatment? None, and that you know. You only use me as amusement, caring not for my emotions at all. I am sick and tired of this treatment, and if I ever hear you say one foul word to me again, what happened to those trees will happen to you, do you understand?" Naruto snarled.

Whimpering, Sakura nodded. Naruto acknowledged her nod with a glare, before turning away. Looking at Neji, Sakura could see the Hyuuga glaring at her as well. She cowered on the ground, only daring to rise when both boys had turned away.

The team traveled in silence before encountering a river. Sasuke looked at the map.

"It seems that if we follow this river, we'll come to Hidden Stone Village soon. The Tsuchikage is expecting us." The team began to follow the river. Neji looked over at Naruto. The blonde was unusually silent.

"_What's wrong?"_

"_The cloud nins are nearby."_

"_How many of them?" Neji's tone was urgent._

"_Three. And they seem like formidable opponents; mid-Chuunin to Jounin level, I think." _

"_Do they know that we're nearby?" Naruto pricked his ears._

"_No. My question is, do you want to ambush them before they ambush us?"_

"_I wouldn't. Just because the mission scroll says they are the enemy, doesn't mean we should put our full trust in a person we haven't met yet. We still need to find out the Tsuchikage's intentions." _

"_Yeah, you're right. I also want to meet the Tsuchikage."_

"_Yeah, let's wait it out for now."_

"_Should we tell the others?"_

"_No."_

The team continued on towards Hidden Stone Village, only stopping to eat some fish Neji caught in the river.

Tenten looked over at Neji with a thoughtful look in her eyes. Neji had changed. Not only had he received that strange crystal, he had changed in personality as well. She cast a searching gaze over Neji's features. Eyes that once trusted no one now held a hint of softness. His face had grown much gentler. He had gone from the icy, unemotional person she knew to someone showing some emotion. It seemed Naruto had altered him somewhat.

"Over there!" Sakura pointed to two granite gates. Hidden Stone Village was just in sight. The team walked up to the gates and presented their passes.

"You may go in." The guards opened the doors and the team walked inside. Naruto shuddered slightly.

"_Neji. Did you feel that?"_

"_Yeah. The guards bear a seemingly unearthly aura. Their chakra pulses erratically. It writhes and roils around in their systems, as if it wants to get out. I've never seen chakra do that before."_

"_So you've sensed it too. We'll have to wait it out and see."_

The team made their way to the Tsuchikage's office. They were greeted by Anbu, who told them to wait. Neji silently activated his Byakugan.

A view of who was inside greeted him. The Tsuchikage was alone, resting his head on his hands. Neji probed further, exposing the Tsuchikage's chakra system. What greeted him was a surprise. The Kage's chakra was similar to the guards, fighting to get out. It threw itself along the walls of the system, yet in vain. Neji strained his Byakugan even further and looked at the walls. The walls were slowly but surely weakening. Whatever caused chakra to act this way was unnatural.

"_Naruto. I would be careful if I were you."_

"_Yeah, I know."_

The Anbu usured the team inside, and closed the door with a snap. The kage rose to greet them. He was a ratty man with a seemingly arrogant look about him, although Naruto and Neji could sense the fair amount of power pulsing from him.

"Welcome. I'm glad you could make it. I am the Tsuchikage, and we people of the Hidden Stone are in need of your help. I assume you know what troubles us."

Naruto bowed.

"Yes we do. When are the cloud nin supposed to attack?"

"They should be here about two days from now." Naruto nodded gravely.

"We shall be prepared."

"Good. Rooms shall be provided for you while you stay."

"Thank you. We shall go now." And with that, Naruto and company departed.

Later That Evening

"Ne, Sasuke-kun, will you go on a date with me after this is over? After all, you need to relax." Sakura fluttered her eyelashes seductively. Sasuke simply glared.

"Get out of my room. I don't need crazed fangirls at this time of day." Sakura drooped, then let herself out. Disappointment turned to anger as she stalked towards the room she shared with Tenten.

"It's not fair. Every other eligible guy in Konoha falls for me, yet Sasuke-kun, the one I really want, just won't give in. Why?"

Sakura flipped her hair haughtily over her shoulder and sniffed.

"All right then. If Sasuke-kun won't have me, I'll go for someone else to get his attention. With my new date, Sasuke-kun will be dying to have me. Now who should I pick….?"

Sakura started ticking off names.

"Naruto. Well Sasuke-kun wouldn't approve, much less be jealous, and besides I don't want to go out with a slimeball like Naruto anyway. Lee. Nope, too extreme. Lee looks like a watermelon peel. Kiba, too smelly, Shino, too gross…." Sakura pondered some more.

"I've got it! Neji! After all, he is the most eligible next to Sasuke-kun, and the most powerful next to Sasuke-kun. Come to think of it, he is pretty good-looking with his angular face and long hair. Yes, I think I'll go for Neji. And I can start right away. He is here with us."

Sakura nodded, an evil gleam only a woman can possess coming into her eye. She altered course and began sauntering her way to Neji's bedroom.

On the Balcony of Neji's Bedroom

Neji sighed softly and looked out into the night. He was tired, and he wanted to rest before the mission tomorrow, but he couldn't stop thinking about the disturbing chakra. The Hyuuga genius looked over at Naruto's room, neighboring his, a sweet smile tilting up his lips. Naruto was currently asleep (at least he looked like it) in that absurd nightcap of his, and the striped pajamas. The fox-child positively reeked of innocence when he was asleep. Hell, he looked like a sweet little boy, not a deadly ninja. Neji loved to watch the fox-child sleep.

A sound inside his room roused him from his thoughts. Sakura came toward him, hips swaying gently to and fro. Neji made a disgusted sound. She was such a slut, that pink one. Sakura swayed toward him, the first three buttons of her overly sheer blouse undone, and sat down next to him on the railing.

"Such a lovely night, is it not, Neji-kun?" Sakura cooed in a low, husky voice. Neji could practically feel the syrup dripping from her words. He settled for an unemotional "hmm". Sakura tried again.

"Yes, the stars are so beautiful when not obscured by clouds."

Sakura remarked, flipping her hair to one side to give Neji a full view of her neck (not that he cared). She lifted one leg, revealing all of her thigh (she was oh so conveniently wearing a short, sheer, silky skirt with a slit up the end) and some of her lingerie. Neji gagged silently. Of all the days to wear a shirt which displayed his chest. Only another thing that would draw her to him. Curse this.

"Do you not think so, Neji-kun?" She slowed down, drawing out the "Neji-kun", scooting closer to him and tracing one finger down the sleeve of his shirt. Neji picked her hand off his sleeve with two fingers, subtlety wiping them on the leg of his pants. He inched away from her.

"Tell me Neji, what do you desire most in this world and lifetime? We don't know each other very well, and I think we ought to have a heart-to-heart talk."

Sakura ran the backs of her fingers lightly up and down Neji's back. She had made a good choice. Neji looked far more handsome up close. His eyes were so intense, and accentuated by his high cheekbones. She changed her mind. She would devote herself to Neji, completely forgetting about Sasuke. After all, at least Neji didn't push her away.

The Hyuuga extracted himself from her grasp and leaned on the opposite railing.

"What is it you wish from me?" Neji asked coldly. He liked to be blunt, frank, and to the point.

"Oh, nothing at all, I just wanted a talk with you. Just a friendly conversation, you know?"

Sakura made her way over to Neji, leaning against his shoulder, making sure her hand was touching his. Neji gritted his teeth. Keep breathing. Keep breathing. Sakura undid the last two buttons of her blouse, exposing her stomach, and shifted her shoulders slightly so her blouse revealed the curves of her breasts. Neji started breathing through his mouth. Sakura's perfume was absolutely horrid. Sakura "accidentally" stumbled and fell, waiting for Neji to catch her. He didn't move, and she tumbled ungracefully to the floor. Neji raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry. I tripped." Sakura got up. How dare he not catch her? Well maybe he just didn't see her "trip". Neji sighed and went in his room. Sakura followed, a diabolical plan hatching in her mind. She waited until Neji walked to the foot of his bed, then grasped his arm and spun him to face her, pressing her body against his. She started to lean in.

"Sakura-san, don't you think you are a little too close?" Neji stated. Man, fangirls were annoying, but fangirls in lust were far more troublesome. The Hyuuga mentally called out for Naruto, but he was fast asleep. Curse it, curse it, CURSE IT.

Sakura didn't pay attention but leaned in some more, causing Neji to lean backwards. Sakura's hands found their way to Neji's hair tie and loosed it. She gasped inwardly. Neji looked breathtakingly sexy with his long dark hair spilling like a waterfall over his shoulders. Good choice aside, he was going to be an extremely good catch.

"Neji-kun…please." Sakura said in a low, breathy voice.

"Neji…I love you. I want you so badly. My body longs for you. Please, I'm dying for your touch. Fulfill me, just this once, just tonight." And Sakura leaned down and brushed Neji's lips with her own, caressing Neji's leg with her hands.

All right. That was IT. He'd had enough. Neji gave one sharp shove, propelling Sakura off of his chest. Fangirls in lust were dangerous and regardless of whether she was a girl or not, Neji could only take so much. Sakura stumbled back, gasping slightly. Silver eyes flashed in a glare.

"Never in my life have I seen girls as low as you. You are a disgrace to Konoha. You ought to be ashamed of your behavior. Now get out of my sight." Neji spat viciously.

Sakura whimpered before scampering out of Neji's room. The Hyuuga groaned, mentally exhausted, and sank onto the soft bed, dreams filled with nothing but fox-child.

Love it? Hate it? Silver-eyed Hyuuga


	7. Intense Battle

Yay! There are people out there that despise Sakura! DEATH TO THE PINK! (Anti-Sakura fans rise up and mob the girl) YES! Too bad, only Masashi Kisimoto can do that. Maybe we sould petition the killing of Sakura! Hell yeah! He probably won't tell us though. BTW, If anyone knows the name of Kishimoto-sama's twin brother, could you tell me plz?

Chapter 6: Intense Battle

"Neji. NEJI!" Neji awoke with a start.

"Whuh, wha..?" Naruto leaned over and kissed him briefly, an urgent gleam in his eyes.

"C'mon. It's time to goThe cloud nin are attacking."

Neji hurriedly gathered his weapons and changed. He joined the rest of the team outside and together they made their way to the cloud nin. They were walking past a bush when hands grabbed them and pulled them inside. The team briefly struggled when they were silenced by the ninja's forehead protectors.

"You are the cloud shinobi!" Sasuke gasped in surprise. The man on the right nodded.

"Yes we are. We were ordered to be eliminated by Konoha ninja, but in truth we are not at fault. The present Kage of Hidden Stone is a corrupted leader. In his lust for power, he encountered a strange scroll bearing a curse seal that would increase his chakra. He utilized the seal, and gained immense power."

The man on the left continued where the other left off.

"He has taken control of Hidden Cloud, abusing our natural resources and depriving our people of food, so our Kage sent us to eliminate him. However, we find this impossible, for he gained many allies by inflicting the curse seal on them as well, and boosting their power in exchange for their support. We have sensed your power, and we think you have a good chance of beating him. Especially you two." The man nodded at Naruto and Neji.

"We witnessed your battle with the bandits." Neji nodded.

"We thought you weren't the guilty ones," Naruto spoke up, "but we noticed that the chakra of the Kage seems to want freedom. It is constantly attacking the walls of the system it's imprisoned in."

The two cloud nin tensed. They looked at each other with frightened eyes.

"What?" Naruto asked.

"So the curse seal has progressed this far. You see, the Tenkun seal allows you to increase your chakra by over a thousand times, which is why the Kage hungered for its use. Yet when one receives too much power, one must usually pay a price. Normally, chakra is in harmony with all the other forces within your body. This is maintained in a delicate balance, with both your chakra and your physical strength."

The other cloud nin chimed in.

"Yet when chakra is increased to such an extent, your physical strength must increase as well. The Kage's present strength is nothing short of weak, which is why his chakra is so disturbed. He cannot feel it, but once his chakra breaks loose, he will have hell to pay. It is the same with the guards and all others of his followers. No matter how strong they are, it is not enough to keep the chakra in balance."

The rest of the team nodded in understanding.

"Wait. There are three of you. Where's the other shinobi?" Naruto asked. The other two gaped in astonishment.

"You knew there were three of us?" Naruto and Neji nodded.

"We could sense you making your way to Hidden Stone, just as we were." The shinobi looked at one another.

"Then you are far more powerful than we thought. We had completely disguised our chakra, making it impossible to sense us. As for your question, our third comrade is scouting around to make sure we aren't caught."

There was a rustle in the bushes, and the third one burst in.

"They're here! And they're coming this way! We must run!"

A massive fireball disintegrated their bush. The Kage stood there with a whole army of shinobi standing around him. He smirked triumphantly.

"Thank you so much for leading us to the cloud nin. We are most grateful." The Kage tilted his head to the side, eyes flashing maliciously. Neji's eyes narrowed.

"We know you are to blame. And you aren't getting away with it."

"Too bad you won't live to tell the tale." And with a flick of his wrist, the Kage signaled his army to charge at the team.

Naruto took out three smoke bombs and threw them in front of the attacking army. A huge explosion followed, and when the smoke cleared, the team plus the cloud nin had disappeared. Stone shinobi looked right and left, with orders from the Kage to find and destroy.

Naruto held up the Illusion Kunai. The ivory knife glimmered in the moonlight, radiating a powerful aura. It was time to test this particular weapon. Naruto held up the Kunai to the moonlight, turning it this way and that. When the moon struck the edge of the blade, a white shimmering light appeared. Naruto aimed the light down at a cluster of shinobi.

The shinobi flickered and disappeared. Naruto made a seal, entrapping the ninja in a labyrinth within their minds. He smiled. This would come in handy. He put the Kunai back in his pouch, and summoned one of his two swords. He stood up and yelled for his team.

"Come on, guys. I need some fun." And with that, both his team and the cloud nin jumped down to confront the Stone shinobi.

"Be careful guys. Remember, they are a thousand times more powerful than they were before." Everyone nodded and stood to face the oncoming mass of shinobi.

The three cloud nin enveloped themselves in mist. From the haze, Naruto could hear the sounds of battle; it seemed the cloud nin were on the upper hand. He turned and stood side by side with Neji.

Naruto gripped his sword in his hand and summoned up his chakra. The blade of the sword became fire, while earth, lightning, wind, and icicles swirled around it in a turbulent mass of power. Naruto aimed the blast at a large mass of Stone shinobi. He released the blast, and half of the army was swept clean away. The rest paused in shock, witnessing the quick destruction.

"What are you waiting for? Get them!" The Kage snarled. The Stone shinobi, renewed with new hope, rushed madly towards the Konoha shinobi, a crazed look in their eyes.

Sasuke summoned Chidori and plowed his way through a whole line of shinobi. He spun, nimbly avoiding a shower of stones, then aimed a Goukakyuu (grand fireball) at the ninjas, who protected themselves with shields. Sasuke fired Housenka after Housenka at the shields, but failed when the stone remained intact. The Kage flicked his wrist again, and the Stone shinobi poured over the walls and rained down on Sasuke.

This was seriously bad. Sasuke was outnumbered a hundred to one, and they were all attacking at the same time. But just when they were about to collide, a shield appeared around Sasuke and all that came in contact were burned. Sasuke looked around only to find Naruto holding a shimmering sword with a black hilt and handle.

"Next time take care of yourself. I can't watch over you constantly." Naruto smirked. Sasuke muttered "dobe" before resuming the battle.

Tenten whirled right and left, engaging in a deadly dance with her weapons. Sakura just cowered with fear, leaving Tenten to protect both herself and the girl. She engaged in her Twin Dragon technique, spewing out weapons. The stone shinobi either dodged or blocked them before continuing to rush in. Tenten bit her lip. Weapons had no effect on stone, putting her at a serious disadvantage.

Suddenly a huge blast cleared away all the Stone Shinobi. Neji stood in front of Tenten with one of his Sickles in hand.

"You should be more careful, Tenten." Sakura, sensing the loss of danger, looked up warily. When she saw Neji standing in front of her, she squealed and hugged him tightly, thanking him profusely for saving her life. Neji slipped out of her grasp and resumed the battle.

Naruto looked around. Hordes upon hordes of Stone Shinobi came pouring out at him. No matter how many he destroyed, they kept on coming. He performed a seal he had made countless times before.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Hundreds upon thousands of Narutos appeared. The real Naruto clenched his jaw and gave a silent command.

"_I wanna test out this little creation of mine."_

At once all the Kage Bunshin paired up. Each of the partners began forming a Rasengan inside their hand until the field was lit up with glowing blue balls. Naruto jumped into the air, spinning madly with two rasengan in his hands and one in his mouth. The rest of the Kage Bunshin rushed up and began running in a circle around the original as well until they accumulated one large tornado of Narutos.

"Now!"

Upon Naruto's command, each of the Kage Bunshin threw their Rasengan at the oncoming slaughter of Stone Ninjas. Hundreds of balls flew towards the Stone Shinobi, exploding when they hit. Naruto smirked. Kyuubi, after observing the flow and rotation of the chakra used to form Rasengan, had taught Naruto how to explode the Rasengan after they hit.

After the smoke cleared, Naruto looked around. There were no Stone Shinobi left coming toward him, but a good many were still coming toward Neji, Sasuke, Tenten, and Sakura. Neji and Sasuke were doing a good job, but the flow of crazed shinobi didn't seem to slow down.

Neji swiped viciously at a horde of shinobi, killing them off, when his Byakugan detected a presence behind him. The Hyuuga spun around only to lose his Sickle when a man grabbed it from behind. Neji quickly dispelled it and settled for Jyuuken instead. He utilized Kaiten, sending stone shinobi flying, and fought hand to hand with all the oncoming ninja.

Naruto looked on. Sasuke and Neji were still holding out, but the flow of ninja was just too much. Neji had successfully eliminated a good many ninja using Jyuuken, but it seemed he was running low on chakra. Naruto decided to help his long-haired lover.

Neji felt weak and tired, but kept on fighting. He staggered and almost fell, but kept on fighting back. Just when he reached his limit, he felt an immense surge of power. Chakra coursed through the Hyuuga, winding its way through his system, nourishing him and giving him strength. Neji summoned a huge force from his crystal and blew every Stone Shinobi within a forty yard radius to pieces.

"Naruto!" The kitsune came running over.

"Naruto! Did you give me your chakra!" Naruto grinned wearily.

"Yeah."

"How much did you give me? You can barely stand now!" Naruto wobbled and leaned heavily on Neji.

"I gave you all of it."

"YOU DID! Why? Now you have nothing left to fight with!" Naruto gave a lopsided grin.

"I still have Kyuubi. Besides, we need to demolish those." And Naruto pointed to the currently regrouping Stone Shinobi.

"_I guess I have to use that jutsu now." _Naruto began making a long list of hand seals.

"Naruto…?" Neji started to ask, but was stopped by Sasuke.

"Don't disturb him. People can execute a technique better when their concentration is unbroken." The Uchiha heir stated. Neji nodded and looked at Naruto worriedly.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted, planting his palm into the ground. Instantly a huge explosion shook the ground, and when the smoke cleared, a magnificent silver fox with eight tails and a gold star on its forehead stood on the battlefield.

"_Kuchiyose is the first part. Now the hard part begins._

"Well, what are you waiting for? ATTACK!" The Tsuchikage shouted. Renewed with strength, the Stone Shinobi began rushing towards Naruto.

"Akane," Naruto said. The great fox looked towards Naruto, eyeing him with great gold eyes.

"What is it you wish, Naruto-san?" Naruto stared long and hard into Akane's eyes. She nodded, and Naruto jumped nimbly onto her head. Akane opened her mouth and fired an immense fireball in the shape of a fox towards the Stone Shinobi. Naruto summoned a fox of lightning, and the two foxes, fire and lightning, intertwined within each other and shot towards the Stone Shinobi. Naruto made five other hand seals, and foxes of leaves, wind, metal, sand, and stone intertwined with fire and lightning to form one fox of immense power. The fox reared once, then plunged itself into the Stone Shinobi. There was a brilliant flash of white-hot light, and the field cleared itself of all the Stone Shinobi altogether.

Naruto looked around. Had the Kage been destroyed too? He zoomed in on a lone figure surrounded by a chakra shield. Apparently not. Too bad. He mentally signaled to Neji.

"_I'll take on the Kage. You treat the rest of the team, okay? Sasuke has a nasty looking gash in his side, and Tenten has a wound on her shoulder. "_

"_Yeah, I know. Be careful, Naruto." Neji sounded worried._

"_Pfft. You know me. I'm never careful. No use telling me now, is there?"_

"_No. But one can always hope." _

Naruto nodded reassuringly at Neji, and stood to face the Tsuchikage.

Sorry, no Sakura bashing in this chapter unless you squint very hard at the part when she's cowering behind Tenten. For all you anti-Sakura fans, I'm one too, so you can expect major bashing later.


	8. Heated Duel

Hi again, minna! Thank you sooooooooooooooo...etc. much for reading this far and reviewing! I wuv you guys!

Chapter 8: Heated Duel

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" The Kage summoned an immense boar with evil-looking tusks. The boar looked around and spotted Akane. Akane swished her tails menacingly, while the boar pawed the ground. The Tsuchikage leapt onto the boar.

"Inake! Attack!" The boar just snuffled and started rooting in the ground for any tasty morsels. Akane and Naruto burst out laughing, both rolling on the ground in tears. The Kage looked seriously disgruntled.

"You goddamn boar! You're supposed to attack WHEN I TELL YOU TO ATTACK!" Inake looked up lazily, then rolled over, pinning the Kage underneath him. Naruto and the great fox snickered. Inake glared at the Kage.

"And what's in it for me? A whole lot of injuries while you get all the credit?"

"I promise I won't summon you for five generations!"

"Make it seven, and you got a deal." Inake lowered his head and thrust his tusks into the ground. A minute later, they exploded out of the ground and aimed for Akane. She jumped to the side and they followed.

The silver fox aimed a blast of fire at the tusks, searing them slightly but doing no damage. The tusks followed, and Akane bit down hard on the right one, breaking it off.

"Akane! To your right!" Too late, Akane jumped out of the way, but a tusk gave her a long gash on her right flank. She growled in pain.

"Are you okay!"

"I'm okay. The wound is merely superficial." Akane leapt into the air, fur becoming deadly spikes, and fired them at Inake. The boar howled with pain as he was impaled brutally with many spikes.

"Curse you, you deceitful Kage…." The boar cried as he undid the Kuchiyose. Now only the Kage was left standing to face a giant fox and an enraged leaf nin. Naruto leapt off of Akane's back, dispelling the Kuchiyose, and landed with all the grace of a cat at the feet of the Kage.

"Do you honestly think a meek little boy like you stands a chance against me?" The Kage's face twisted into an ugly sneer. Naruto cocked his head thoughtfully before replying.

"Yeah, actually I think I do. You don't seem very strong, even with the curse seal." Naruto stated bluntly. The Tsuchikage wavered.

"You don't have to be so meeeeaaan…" the Kage whimpered. Naruto sweatdropped. The Kage crumpled to the ground and began sobbing into his hands. Sasuke, Sakura, Tenten, Neji, and the cloud nin sweatdropped as well.

"See? We told you he was weak." The cloud nin stated. The team nodded in agreement. Suddenly the Kage stood up and made a long list of hand seals. Naruto squinted closely at them. He'd heard of the Tenkun curse seal before, and it seemed like the Kage was trying to gaim more power.

The Kage completed the seals, and suddenly a huge surge of chakra racked his body. He was glowing brightly in the battlefield, a sinister aura emitting from him. Neji activated his Byakugan. The Kage's chakra was now thrashing harder than ever against his system walls. He wouldn't hold out for very long.

"Doton, Doryuuga no Jutsu!"

A river of mud spewed out at Naruto, corroding everything it touched. Naruto jumped into the air, avoiding the deadly river, and ready with a seal of his own.

"Fool. Now you shall see what I can really do." Naruto made a few seals.

The acidic mud river that was making its way towards Naruto suddenly took the shape of a dragon and changed course, heading towards the Kage. The Kage's eyes widened. It was his jutsu, yet this mere boy could manipulate his own technique! This couldn't be happening. The Kage quickly countered with a shield of his own, but not without sustaining some damage to his side.

A hand rose out of the surface and pulled the Kage down underground. The two struggled until they both burst out of the ground with tremendous force. Naruto tried to activate the Illusion Kunai, but it wouldn't respond.

"**It is nighttime now, kit. The Illusion Kunai only works with light, and the only source you have is the moon which is covered by clouds."**

Naruto smirked.

"Then I'll have to find some other method." The fox-child thought long and hard.

"I know."

Naruto formed a rasengan in his hand and held the Kunai up to the glow. Kanji appeared on the blade, intertwining with the blue of the rasengan. Naruto flung the Kunai where it struck the ground in front of the Kage. The Kunai burst into a pure white light, and engulfed the Kage completely.

Naruto pulled the weapon out of the ground and pocketed it when he noticed something on the ground. He picked up a small glass marble and gazed intently at the Kage trapped inside. The Kage was fighting to get out, spewing a long string of curse words. Naruto grinned and was about to pocket the marble when one of the cloud nin alerted him.

"Naruto, look out!"

The glass marble exploded, expelling the Kage. Naruto leapt back and went into defense.

"Now, you shall pay for your actions."

The Kage started to make a seal when he stopped. He clutched at his sides worriedly. Neji stared at his chakra system with Byakugan. It seemed that the chakra had finally broken free.

The Kage started convulsing. Chakra began leaking out from his body and encircling his form.

"No. NO! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING…."

The chakra rose up as one, and then swallowed the Kage completely. Nothing was left except for a glowing ball at the base. Naruto picked it up gingerly, and it cracked open to reveal a regal form. A man rose out of the ball, wearing long robes of white.

"I am the true Tsuchikage. The imposter drugged my drink one night and sealed me up in this ball while he took over. I am greatly in debt to you ninja for saving me."

"It wasn't a problem." Naruto grinned foxily. The Tsuchikage smiled as well, then glided over to where Neji and the others were sitting.

"You cloud nin shall be repaid handsomely. I am in debt to you, and shall release you and your village from captivity." The cloud nin bowed.

"We thank you, TsuchiKage." They turned to go, but stopped and looked hard at Naruto and the others.

"We do hope we meet again with you. Farewell for now."

"Wait! We didn't get your names!" Naruto yelled. The cloud nin looked back.

"I am Junko, he is Anaki, and he is Mane. Our good wishes to you." The cloud nin stated before disappering in a swirl of mist. Naruto stood up wearily.

"I'm really tired right now and I bet you are too, so can we stay here for one more night before we go home?" Neji grinned.

"But don't you want to report the mission to Tsunade-sama?"

"Yeah, but I' tired, and besides, the place sells SUCH GOOD RAMEN!" Naruto grinned foxily with sparkles in his eyes. Both Neji and the Tsuchikage burst out laughing. Some things never change after all.

Owari! Nope, not owari yet. There's lots more! I've written a lot of stuff, so stay tuned (says it in a salesman voice)!


	9. Intimate Relations

Hiiiiiiii! Sorry for the late update, but I had to write some more!

Chapter 9: Intimate Relations

The Next Morning

Neji groaned and rolled over in his bed. At least he tried to roll over. Naruto had conveniently latched himself onto Neji's waist, nuzzling the other's rib cage. Neji stifled a giggle. Naruto looked so damn SWEET when he was asleep. Naruto frowned in his sleep, sniffling a little, then crawled his way up Neji's lithe body, snuffling in crevices of the Hyuuga that Neji didn't even know he had.

Neji squirmed. Naruto hit a couple of sensitive spots (ahem) along his brave journey north until he struck gold at a particularly soft spot just left of where Neji's ear connected with his jawline, earning a yelp out of the Hyuuga. Naruto squirmed in his sleep on top of Neji, and licked the other's lips gently. Neji unconsciously hugged the boy, nuzzling his hair. Naruto stirred yet again and cracked open an eye.

"I was awake the whole time." Neji's eyes widened. Naruto smiled softly and kissed the Hyuuga deeply before rolling off of him.

"Can I comb your hair?"

Neji nipped the boy playfully on the ear, implying his consent. Naruto plucked a comb off of the bedside table and raised it to Neji's hair. He stopped halfway through at the sight of Neji's locks.

"You sure do accumulate a lot of knotballs in your hair."

Naruto dropped the comb and took a seat behind Neji. He summoned his claws and began to lightly pick at the snarls in Neji's hair. Neji relaxed, leaning into Naruto. Contrary to his own frustrating experiences with knotballs, Naruto was somehow skilled at unraveling snarls, and patiently picked out each individual knot.

After all the unsnarling was over and done with, Naruto brushed Neji's hair until it gleamed like ebony, showing off its petroleum color. Neji slipped out of bed and padded to the kitchenette in the apartment. He stood in shock at the sight that greeted him. It seemed that Naruto had once again been in a fit of gourmet cooking.

He heard Naruto busying himself in the bathroom and proceeded with eating the various dishes Naruto had prepared. Naruto subtlety slipped into the kitchenette, wearing nothing but a pair of black pants. Neji felt his libido act up and a stirring sensation somewhere south. He hastily fought the flush threatening to rise from his cheeks.

Naruto made his way around the kitchen, making sure everything was in order. As he swept by Neji, the Hyuuga caught a faint scent that was uniquely Naruto's, a combination of pine needles, earthy and foresty, yet a sweet scent of mint as well. Neji felt his arms twitch with the impulse to grab the boy, kiss him senseless, rake the stuff off the kitchen table…

Neji snapped out of his thoughts (coughNC-23cough) as Naruto spoke up.

"We better get going. The rest of the team is waiting for us." Neji readily agreed and made his way down to where the rest of the team was waiting.

"Neji-kun, Naruto-kun, shall we go now?" Tenten asked. At their consent, the team started on the long journey home.

Along the way, Tenten shot side glances at Neji. It seemed that Neji had indeed changed a great deal before and during the mission. Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. Whenever Neji looked at Naruto, she could have sworn she saw something deeper stir in Neji's opalescent eyes. It was a feeling she couldn't quite place.

The journey back was altogether peaceful except for a few bandits who faced the dire consequences of pissed off ninjas. Naruto and Neji did all the work, claiming it was fun, and Sakura just annoyed everyone by latching onto Neji after the job was done. Neji was seen spending several minutes dusting himself off afterwards.

The gates of Konoha stood before the team. Home never seemed so sweet. Naruto lead the way into Konoha and bounced his way to the Hokage Tower, where he practically bowled over the Anbu guards on his way to Tsunade.

Naruto burst into Tsunade's office with his Grande Entrance Brilliante of "OI! TSUNADE BAA-CHAN!" The rest of the team slogged in as well, glad to see Naruto was once more the innocent rascal they knew. Together, the five of them looked at the sleeping Tsunade in dismay.

Naruto gestured to the team to cover their ears.

"La la la la la la la la…" Naruto sang a brief C Major scale (warm-ups for the explosion yet to come), cleared his throat, inhaled and…

"TSUNADE-BAACHAN! WHAT KIND OF HOKAGE SLEEPS WHEN THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO BE WORKING! WAKE THE HELL UP!"…let loose the most ear-splitting holler poor Konoha had ever experienced. The village promptly fell to ruins due to the extreme sonic energy emitting from a certain blonde.

Somewhere in the Hidden Village of Sand, Gaara flinched and covered his ears. Someone somewhere had certainly been blessed (in his case, cursed) with a good set of lungs.

Tsunade experienced a very rude awakening and bounced off the walls in shock before colliding with her chair.

"Oi, gaki, don't yell so damned loud…"

"We finished the mission, and here's the report!" Tsunade unrolled the scroll.

"I thought I smelled a rat. When I talked to the Tsuchikage, he seemed a lot more shifty. Well now that the imposter's been disposed of, thank you great—"

Tsunade took a closer look at the report.

"Why does it say here that Naruto didn't do anything at all while Sakura did all the fighting and work? Naruto normally works very hard," Here Tsunade stopped and glared menacingly at Sakura "while Sakura normally latches onto Sasuke." The pink entity blushed; a dead giveaway.

"Sakura, you should be ashamed. Consequently, you will be stripped of your ninja rank, and I will not change my mind." Tsunade swiveled around in her chair, facing away from the team.

"You may go." A shell-shocked Sakura stepped out of the office while Tsunade gave the others their pay.

In Sakura's House

Sakura fumed and paced angrily around her room. It simply wasn't fair. True, Naruto did do all the work, but he still didn't deserve all the credit. Sakura's mind turned to Neji. If she couldn't be a qualified kunoichi anymore, she would just have to set her goals on other things.

Particularly a certain juicy Hyuuga, now that would be a great thing to claim. It would be hard, for she did do some embarrassing stuff while on the mission, but all she had to do was to show Neji her good side. Sakura went downstairs to have a long chat with her mother.

In the Hyuuga Mansion, Specifically Neji's Bedroom

Neji sighed and got ready for the night. It was evening, and he was tired. His blonde lover lay on the bed, snuggling up into the sheets. Neji came softly into the bedroom, hair down and wearing a white yukata. Naruto looked up and smiled his trademark foxy squinty-eyed grin before crouching on the bed, a feral look in his eyes.

"What?" Neji asked. Naruto bent his knees and pounced on the Hyuuga, his mouth aiming for the other's, sending the two of them flying seven feet across the room where they landed with a thump on Neji's rug. Thank whatever gods there were that Neji's room was carpeted. Naruto had conveniently sent Neji backwards, so when they landed, Neji got the brunt of the landing while Naruto was cushioned by the Hyuuga.

They lay together like that, Naruto with his mouth pressed hungrily over Neji's lips, and given the force of the landing, Neji was about to suffocate. Having the daylights knocked out of one and not being able to get oxygen due to someone eating your mouth does not bode well on escaping suffocation.

Neji gasped and choked, while Naruto just giggled madly. Neji felt his anger turn tail and run for dear life due to the fact that Naruto was just too darn cute to be mad at. Neji smiled, picked the fox-child up, dumped him unceremoniously on the bed, and crawled in next to him. Naruto snuggled up against Neji, cuddling into the crook of his neck, one arm entwining Neji's waist, the other playing lazily with his hair.

"Naruto?" Naruto mumbled softly, a sign that he heard.

"Why do you like my hair so much?" Cerulean eyes opened thoughtfully.

"'Cause it's soft, pretty, silky, shiny, long, feathery, practically weightless, elegant, and I could go on forever."

"Really?" Neji hadn't thought of it that way before.

"Yeah. Your hair is nice."

Neji chuckled and squeezed Naruto before pinning the boy to the bed by his wrists. Neji's smile turned carnal as Naruto made the fatal mistake of looking up at him through heavy lashes, a seductive smile playing on his face. Neji made a mental note to himself to torture the boy until he begged.

Naruto seemed to have a different plan though. As Neji bent down to kiss the blonde, he turned away at the last minute, so Neji caught the edge of his mouth instead of his lips. Neji frowned. He leaned in quickly and caught Naruto's elusive lips with his own in a quick brief motion, sucking hard on the flesh so Naruto wouldn't be able to pull away.

Mouth still plastered onto Naruto's succulent lips, Neji began undoing the buttons on Naruto's shirt. He got rid of the annoying obstacle and began trailing a hot sticky path down Naruto's chest. Naruto had somehow undone the sash on Neji's white yukata, and also removed the obstruction. Neji pressed his body alongside Naruto's, licking and nipping Naruto's ribs.

Naruto moaned and writhed under the Hyuuga. He quickly extracted himself from under the boy and deftly pinioned Neji to the bed in the same manner. Naruto's eyes roved up and down Neji's chest, an evil gleam forming in his eyes. Neji would pay for torturing him so. Naruto ever so slowly lowered his lips to Neji's neck, stopping millimeters away from the tempting skin in the same manner he did before.

Neji could feel the heat radiating from Naruto's lips, the kitsune's breath on his skin, and the mere feathery sensation and stimulation nearly drove him insane. So slowly he almost didn't seem to move, Naruto began making his way down Neji's chest, breathing lightly on the skin, making sure that every part of Neji's torso was fully stimulated. Neji mewled softly, begging for more.

"Naruto…" The half-crazed Hyuuga stared up at Naruto pleadingly.

Naruto grinned, a feral, evil grin. He turned over and began brushing his hair lightly over Neji's chest, swishing the soft sun-kissed locks over every part of Neji's chest. What was left of Neji's poor tattered mind was torn to shreds, along with the last of his sanity. Neji gripped the boy and kissed him like there was no tomorrow. Naruto responded hungrily as well, and the two stayed like this for what seemed like a day and a half until Neji reluctantly pulled away from the boy, a string of saliva connecting the two.

"We're making too much noise." Naruto pricked his ears.

"Yeah. Hanabi hasn't gone to sleep yet." Neji stroked the boy softly.

"Shall we continue this later, Naru-chan?" Naruto raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"It would be my pleasure."

So both boys settled for plain good-old-fashioned sleep.

Gonna be some Sakura bashing in the next chappy for all you anti-sakura fans out there!


	10. Mission of Nightmares

Hi again! Sorry for the late update...I needed to write some more, cuz fans were requesting longer chapters; anyway, MAJOR SAKURA BASHING! HELL YEAH!

Chapter 10: Mission of a Nightmare

The Next Morning

Neji awoke to find Hanabi once again hyperventilating on his floor due to a bloody nose. She always seemed to find the choicest times to enter. He sighed. Hiashi probably was requesting his presence again. Neji extracted himself from Naruto's grasp (it took a full fifteen minutes before the blonde was willing to let go, even in sleep), and silently glided his way to Hiashi's quarters.

"Hiashi-sama. You requested me?" Neji bowed. Hiashi nodded gravely.

"It seems you are going on a solo mission, Neji. Mrs. Haruno wishes her daughter Sakura to be escorted to a cousin's house in the Hidden Village of Cloud, and Sakura picked you as her escort."

Neji stood quite still for some time, the words registering slowly in his brain.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! YOU'RE GOING TO LEAVE ME WITH HER!" Konoha promply fell to ruins once more. The villagers groaned and set upon the harrowing task of rebuilding the village yet again.

Somewhere far off, Gaara flinched again. He made a mental note to kill and enjoy the killing of the traitorous bastards who disturbed his rest.

Hiashi panted wildly, a rare thing for such a dignified Hyuuga to do. But panting was only natural in this situation, seeing that Neji had cracked every expensive, fragile, and delicate object within range of 50 miles.

"Neji, Neji. Please. You are a Hyuuga, and Hyuuga do not yell."

"Sakura is an able ninja, therefore she can handle herself!" Neji pleaded frantically after regaining his composure.

"Ah, but the young Ms. Haruno is no longer a ninja, now is she?"

Neji clenched his teeth. It seemed that Sakura had used her demotion to her advantage. Women could be so brutal. He was glad he had a male lover. Naruto practically wore his emotions on his sleeve. He smiled in the direction of the kitchen. Already he could smell Naruto's cooking.

In the Kitchen

Naruto happily stirred and tasted, making Neji's breakfast. He'd need it on the mission today. Avoiding Sakura took large amounts of energy. He heard Kyuubi stir in his mind.

"**While you were asleep last night, I did a little research. It seems that a few renegade Anbu from Hidden Village of the Rain want the secret of the Byakugan, and they're targeting Neji. They watched the Chuunin exams and know that Neji has fearsome talent, so they're going to attack sometime on this mission."**

"_How do you know all of this?"_

"**Kitsune know a great deal more than you think. I'd follow Neji at a safe distance if I were you."**

"_All right. Thanks, Kyu-chan."_

"**Oi. No nicknames."**

"_Stingy."_

Naruto greeted Neji with a long, hot, and sticky kiss before delving into his own breakfast.

Later

Neji sighed dejectedly and dragged his feet over to the meeting place with Sakura. Naruto followed close behind, disguising his chakra well. Neji did seem dejected on having to travel with Sakura. Naruto wondered why (Remember, he hasn't found out about Sakura's feelings). Just then a blur of pink made its way to Neji at break-neck speed.

"NEJI-KUN! YOU'RE HERE!" Sakura latched onto Neji and hugged for all she was worth. Neji winced and squirmed frantically, trying to disengage himself. Women were indeed brutal, especially those in lust.

Sakura giggled and fluttered her eyelashes at the Hyuuga. Neji sighed. This was going to be a looooooooong mission. He mentally willed himself to keep a death grip on his sanity. And so, he and the pink one started on their trip to Hidden Cloud Village.

Naruto chuckled and was about to follow when a sudden burst of power tore through his body. He gasped. That chakra wasn't his. It wasn't Kyuubi's either, yet it came from within him. Naruto sought out the fox.

"_Kyuubi. What the hell was that?"_

"**Oh no. I was afraid this was going to happen**." The fox sounded worried.

"_What is it?"_

"**Someone has altered the balance between the natural and supernatural forces. Normally, the natural and supernatural forces reside in peaceful harmony, but someone has unleashed a demon that should have stayed in its own realm."**

"_So what happens then?"_

"**The reason you felt this great disruption is because all demons are linked one way or another. This way we know which demons are corrupted or released, and can stop the demon before it wrecks havoc upon the world."**

"_So that's what Yondaime did when he sealed you into me, right?"_

"**I was corrupted by the snake bastard Orochimaru. Against my will, I was forced upon Konoha. The only reason I was sealed up, is because I managed to regain a bit of my soul right before the sealing. I gave Yondaime a clear shot at my soul. Had I not regained my soul back then, Yondaime would've never sealed me up."**

"_You?YOU! A great fox like you managed to be corrupted by one little man like HIM?" _Kyuubi huffed.

"**He took me when I was sleeping, okay?"**

"_Yeah, yeah, I believe you. But why did he want a fox of all animals? I would've guessed a snake."_

"**Orochimaru needed a strong attack if he wanted to destroy Konoha. Manda, his head Kuchiyose, proved to be too unwilling."**

"_Oh. I see. So now what do I have to do"_

"**We have to stop this person at all costs. The demon is Kunako, a centipede with a bad attitude. He is currently making his way towards Hidden Cloud."**

"_Great. Not only do I have to protect my lover, I have to dispose of a demon as well? Two missions in one is a lot. Still, I could use the fun. How strong is this Kunako?"_

"**Immensely strong physically, but he lacks a great deal in strategy. He tends to use brute force instead of thinking."**

"_Damn, I should have brought Shikamaru…"_

"**You cannot always rely on the pony-tailed one. Besides, I think you can handle him."**

"_All right, I'll do it."_

Naruto hopped gracefully through the trees, keeping an eye on Neji and looking out for any multi-legged pests at the same time.

With Sakura and Neji

"Neji…." Sakura drawled seductively. Neji sighed and clenched his jaw.

"Yes?" Sakura pulled up the slit of her skirt to reveal her thigh.

"I have this AWFUL itch on my thigh, and I can't get rid of it. Could you do something about it please?" She sighed. Neji rolled his eyes and pretended not to hear.

"Neji?"

"So scratch it." Sakura couldn't believe it. Neji didn't even bat an eyelash. After all she went through to shape her thighs to the perfect shape they were in now.

"I tried, Neji-kun, but I don't have long enough fingernails. Perhaps you do." Neji twitched spasmodically.

"Sa-ku-ra, I have no wish to defile you." Neji forced out the word, albeit a bit painfully.

"But it wouldn't be considered defiling me, Neji-kun. I'd enjoy it."

"Let me rephrase that. I have no wish for you to defile me." The Hyuuga spat, and started to walk a little faster. The faster he walked, the sooner they'd get there, and the sooner he'd get rid of the eyesore. No scratch that; the cancerous lump of pink. Yes, that was better.

The fact that Neji would not fall prey to her advances made Sakura extremely annoyed. Hell, whenever she showed even a fraction of skin above her knee to Lee, he'd swoon and keel over with a nosebleed. Neji didn't even blink when she showed off her bra at the hotel room in the last mission. Sakura huffed angrily and lapsed into silence, her evil mind plotting away like mad.

The two walked on in silence. Neji stepped on a twig and Sakura took the opportunity to leap into his arms and hang on for dear life. Luckily Neji had prepared a Kawarimi, so Sakura ended up hugging a log. As the two made their way through the densest part of the forest, Neji felt heat radiating from a spot just northeast of where they were headed. Sakura felt it as well.

"Neji-kun! I think I found a hot spring!"

Neji inclined his head in the slightest bit to show that he knew. Sakura forgot all about Neji for the time being and raced to the hot spring, squealing in delight. She stripped quickly and leaped in, sighing as the water quickly worked its healing magic upon her nerves.

Sakura floated around once or twice before washing herself thoroughly with a spare bar of scented soap she had brought along. She dipped and bobbed in and out of the water, and was about to dry off when the most evil idea of evil ideas that Sakura ever had just materalized in her head. A foolproof plan to seduce Neji. Sakura cackled evilly and went to dry off.

"Neji-kun! It's your turn!" Sakura sang. Neji plugged his ears and winced. The pink had such a screeching voice. It sounded like Kisame raking his Samehada across metal. Ouch. Neji's ears would never forgive him after this. Still, he did want to enjoy some time alone in the hot springs, so he made his way through the bushes, stripped (A/N: Drooool…Neji is so goddamn hot!), and waded into the hot springs.

The Hyuuga sighed in satisfaction. Natural hot springs were so much better than the ones in Konoha. He wished Naruto could have been there. Neji sighed and let the water soothe him, let the water caress and embrace him in the most intimate of ways. He sank down into the warm substance and closed his eye lazily.

Sakura peeked through the bushes with several forests' worth of tissues shoved up her nose. She wiped the string of drool from her chin and stripped down to her lingerie. She changed into the lacy ultra-sheer black bra and underwear she had brought along to her trip and stepped out into the clearing.

Neji had his back turned and was washing his hair lazily when he felt the normally calm water stir slightly. He turned around only to see Sakura sauntering slowly towards him. Only two words rang through the Hyuuga's mind.

Oh. Shit.

Shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit. What the fuck was Sakura doing in the hot spring! And with him NAKED as well! Not to mention Sakura was scantily clad! How the hell was he going to get that bitch away from him now? Neji shrieked (never would he admit to shrieking. Ever.) and dove as fast as he possibly could into the water. Sakura groped about and fished him out by his hair, then turned him around to face her.

"Neji-kun…"

Sakura reached around, grasped Neji's hips firmly, and ground them against hers, rocking back and forth while she kissed him passionately on the lips. She continued to gyrate her lower half against his, one hand kept firmly on his hips while the other moved down to the backs of his thighs. Neji struggled and thrashed like a caged bird which Sakura mistook as an invitation; as a result, she crushed their lips together even harder and began to take off her underwear.

Naruto sat overlooking the whole scenario with utter fury. Sakura, his own teammate, had double-crossed him. How dare she try and steal what was his. The filthy whore had gone too far, and for that she would pay. He silently slit his finger and made seals. The fox-child Kuchiyosed a few little hindrances and gave them the silent command to slip into the water.

Neji's eyes widened as Sakura slipped the elastic straps of her bra over her shoulders. He began to panic when he suddenly saw a numerous amount of creatures slide down from a tree and into the water. Calculating swiftly, he turned Sakura around so that her back was to the tree and walked the two of them closer to where he estimated the creatures would end up. Sakura moaned in delight, glad that Neji was finally responding.

She took her mouth off of his to breathe and was about to kiss him again when she felt a sharp stinging sensation. Her fingers fumbled around behind her and felt something slimy. Horrified, Sakura looked down only to witness a long black organism parked happily on her butt. She screeched in horror and began frantically prying at the creature only to discover that there were dozens upon dozens more stuck to her legs and at least hundreds were making their way up her body with soft squelchy sounds.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Sakura danced about crazily, fingers pulling wildly at the leeches that attached themselves to her. She leaped out of the hot springs and right into a bed of stinging nettles. She shrieked again and tumbled back into the dangerous plants, writhing about chaotically. It took every ounce of chakra Naruto could muster to keep himself in his tree, for he was making a valiant attempt at hiding his snickers.

Sakura screamed once more, yowling and prying off leeches as she ran like hell back to the campsite. Neji laughed and wrung the soap out of his hair before putting on his clothes and joining her. Naruto smirked and shook his head slowly. He settled for sleeping in the tree, watching over his long-haired lover.


	11. Perilous Situation

Chapter 11: Perilous Situation

The Next Morning

Sakura tossed and turned and turned and tossed. For some reason she felt incredibly itchy, sore, and downright uncomfortable. She cracked open an eye and scratched herself in places she wouldn't normally scratch in front of public to relieve the itching, but only made it worse. Sakura looked down at her body, and screamed. She was covered with hives and a large swelling rash that itched like crazy and left growths oozing with pus on her skin. She started dancing about and clawing at her body.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The more she scratched, the worse it got until some of the boils ruptured and spewed her with a sticky yellowish-green discharge. Sakura shrieked again and clawed frantically at her body. As more boils ruptured, dozens more took their place until Sakura had no distinguishable shape. She gave up and wrapped herself in bandages and clothing before stepping out of her tent.

Neji was awake and cooking breakfast when he noticed a blob come out of Sakura's tent. He took one look at her disgruntled expression, the bandages and clothing wrapped around her, and the yellow pus that was leaking out despite all the wrappings and burst into hysterical laughter. Naruto fell off the tree from laughter and landed ungracefully in a clump of berry bushes where he snickered crazily.

Neji was paralyzed on the ground, rolling around and grabbing his ribs. Sakura looked so freaking funny. The female pink entity growled menacingly. The fact that a shapeless blob like her could growl sent Neji into paroxysms of gut-wrenching laughter. He remained that way for a full fifteen minutes before wiping his eyes and packing for their journey.

Once on the road, Sakura and Neji walked along in silence, save for the occasional giggles coming from the Hyuuga. Naruto silently hopped along as well.

"**Kit, the demon centipede Kunako is coming this way at a rapid pace. He should be here shortly, so prepare yourself."**

"_Hey, I can sense him perfectly well, thank you very much."_

"**I'm just checking. What fox would not agonize over the well-being of their kit?"** Kyuubi's voice overflowed with affection. Naruto gasped.

"_You mean…?"_

"**Yes. I have to admit, being stuck inside someone like you has greatly changed me. Everyone wants happiness, joy, and cheerfulness, and you practically radiate those positive emotions. You, Uzumaki Naruto, the one who has changed so many people with your ways, have finally managed to soften this icy heart of mine."**

Aqualine eyes filled with tears, blurring his vision. Never before had he been appreciated like this. All his life he had been shunned and mistreated, and now, finally, he had found someone who truly gave a crap whether he existed or not. Naruto sniffed and blew his nose noisily before rotating his ears back and forth, trying to catch the sound of an approaching centipede.

"**Kit."** Kyuubi's gentle baritone resonated through the corners of Naruto's psyche.

"_Yeah?"_

"**You shall always be my kitsune, no matter what happens. I shall always be there for you, whenever you need me."**

"_Why are you telling me this now?"_

"**Because Kunako is truly strong, and I'm worried that you won't stand a chance against him. You might just die, kitling. And if you do, I just want you to know that I love you."**

The corners of Naruto's mouth turned up slightly.

"_Don't worry Kyuubi. I won't die. Afterwards, we'll all go back to the way we are."_

"**Kit, don't make promises you may not be able to keep." **Kyuubi sounded truly sorrowful.

"_Jeez Kyuubi. You're getting me all depressed. Now no more sentimental crap, alright? Save that for later when I defeat this centipede." _Naruto's voice shifted back into its usual chipper determination.

"_He's coming. Get ready Kyuubi. I might need to use your chakra."_

A grating shriek ripped the air to shreds as a great head reared back and started making its way towards where it sensed Naruto was at, snapping trees like toothpicks. Kunako slithered closer and closer towards the kit-child, hissing insidiously as it came. A tiny pinprick resided on Kunako's head, evidence that a man was controlling the demon.

Sakura screamed bloody fratricide and pointed towards the immense shadow that cast itself over the ground. Neji looked up and gasped. The centipede was huge, bearing a silkily evil aura about it. The Hyuuga recoiled slightly from the bloodlust emitting from the creature.

Suddenly something shot out of the trees and landed lightly on the ground in front of the duo. Naruto stood up slowly, enrobed in full fiery-crimson armor. Neji inhaled sharply. His kitsune was here? Naruto stood up slowly, dark eyes flashing fire and brimstone as he glared shrapnel at Kunako. The centipede surveyed him with beady obsidian eyes.

"Get out of my way you damn brats before I rip you to shreds and scatter you to the winds." The voice that Kunako possessed rasped and grated like a cistern. The man on his head kneeled slightly and tapped the magnificent head thrice, emitting an unearthly chakra. Kunako reared and plunged headfirst towards Naruto.

The fox-child stood there glaring serenely at Kunako, right up until the last second when he jumped away. Kunako skidded and rounded upon Naruto once more, who only continued to gaze at the great centipede with stone features. Kunako opened his mouth and sprayed corrosive acid at Naruto. The blonde coated his hand with chakra, caught the acid almost lazily, and flung it back at the centipede. Kunako dodged, but to everyone's surprise, the drops reversed track and came straight back at Kunako.

"What?"

Naruto smiled silkily. He had infused the acid with his chakra and now was controlling it. Kunako simply let the acid connect, where it burned a hole in his shell. The victory was short lived; Kunako repaired himself almost instantly. Naruto readied the Silence and Earth Glaives as the two lethal feelers on Kunako's head corkscrewed their way towards him. Naruto let loose an enormous blast from both glaives, destroying one feeler. The other one kept coming, and there was no way Naruto could dodge. Suddenly a cresent shaped energy came tearing out at the feeler, vaporizing it completely. Petroleum-colored hair floated down as Neji landed next to Naruto.

"I couldn't let you steal all the fun."

Naruto smirked, kissed the Hyuuga ("Mmf! Not now Naruto, we're fighting!"), and the two crossed blades.

"_Remember what Sandaime said? Only when we work together will the true power of the blades be drawn out."_

"_I know, Naru-chan, I know."_

As one, the boys combined their energy and pelted Kunako with blast upon blast of energy. Kunako roiled and shrieked as the energy destroyed him, but continued to remain standing no matter how much Naruto and Neji attacked him.

"Damn. He's not budging."

Naruto slowly turned his head and looked Neji straight in the eye, his gaze intense, urgent, and knowing. Neji nodded slightly. He summoned all seven of his Sickles while Naruto summoned all of his Glaives, his two swords, and the Illusion Kunai. The weapons began to glow with a pure white light and slowly rose into the air, shimmering as they ascended. Flashes of iridescent light emitted from each of the weapons before a blinding flash of white-hot power engulfed them completely. Kunako reared, hissing as the light struck his sensitive eyes.

The enormous power surge pulsed once, and faded away completely, leaving a weapon suspended in the air. It was more magnificent than all the others, and hummed a deadly melody as it rotated slowly in the air. It descended and came to rest in front of Neji and Naruto, radiating a serene, calming aura.

"_This is the final stage of your weapons combined. It is known as the Glaive of All Being and wields much more power than all the others put together. Use it well."_

Both boys nodded grimly as Sandaime's voice echoed inside their heads. Together Neji and Naruto closed their fingers lightly over the handle of the majestic weapon. The handle began pulsing gently, sending reassuring bursts of energy down at the boys. Both crystals began to glow. Kyuubi gasped inwardly. Even the great fox was in awe of the massive aura.

"You ready?"

"Yeah, let's finish this together."

The Hyuuga and the fox-child set their teeth determinedly and poured the contents of their chakra up the handle and into the blade. Instantly the blade shimmered and shone until it lit up the world with its power. Naruto and Neji swung back the blade and released the energy straight at Kunako.

The giant centipede shrieked once, a long wailing scream, before it was disintegrated completely. A thundering explosion was heard, and nothing was left of the centipede. Naruto and Neji collapsed on the ground, having reached their limit. Both laughed in triumph, having defeated the giant creature.

The man controlling Kunako growled softly. His prize demon, the one he had worked for years upon years to control and release had been destroyed by two mere boys. How could this be? He stood up silently and made some hand seals. He would go for the silver-eyed one first

"Kanashibari no Jutsu!"

Neji was instantly bound, incapacitated and unable to move. His eyes widened as the man came forward towards him at a neck-breaking spead, a large four-pronged spear in his hands. Naruto was too exhausted to move, so he wouldn't be able to help. Neji struggled for a kunai, but the situation was hopeless seeing the speed that the man was approaching. The Hyuuga's eyes closed as he waited for the inevitable.

There was a sickening ripping sound as metal collided on flesh and ripped through.

Naruto spat out some blood and collapsed slightly. He had been lying on the ground in exhaustion when he had seen the man coming at Neji. Calling up Kyuubi's chakra, he had propelled himself full force towards Neji using the last ounce of strength he possessed. The fox-child had made it in time but caught the full brunt of the weapon.

The blonde spat out some more blood and rounded on the man, breaking the spear that was imbedded in his chest. With renewed strength, Naruto turned around, two Rasengans in his hand. He rammed both into the man's entrails, and destroyed him completely with a blast from his crystal. That being done, he turned to face Neji, staggering slightly.

"Naruto…why?" Neji whispered dazedly. The blonde smiled softly.

"Neji…I'm so glad…that you're all right."

Naruto leaned up and brushed his lips against Neji's once before crumpling. The blonde's lifeless body fell to the ground, a slight smile on his features.

Neji let out a strangled sob and broke free of the Kanashibari. He fell upon Naruto, shaking the blonde frantically.

"Naruto! NARUTO! Wake up! You can't die! You just can't die!"

Neji's voice shook terribly as Naruto didn't respond. Neji was about to shake him once more when he saw the blonde's eyelashes flutter and his lips move slightly.

"Ai…sheteru…Neji."

Naruto's voice whispered so softly, Neji had to strain to hear the words. The fox-child's eyes closed and a placid look came over his face. Neji's eyes widened. Spheres of moisture broke free of opalescent eyes and coursed their way down Neji's cheeks.

"No…you're faking right? You damn prankster you, you have to be faking! You still need to become Hokage! This is all a joke, right? You're gonna wake up anytime now, and yell that you fooled me right? Naruto, goddammit, WAKE UP!"

Neji practically screamed at the blonde, shaking him frantically. He placed his hand over Naruto's heart.

There was no pulse.


	12. Revival of the Lost

Chapter 12: Revival of the Lost

Neji threw back his head and howled a heart-wrenching sob at the heavens. The scream reverberated around the area as Neji buried his head in Naruto's neck, sobbing desperately as he clutched the blond to his chest. The Hyuuga prodigy moaned Naruto's name over and over as he rested his forehead on the fox-child. Just then Neji saw a flash of light, and Naruto's body began to exhale smoke.

The white misty vapors rose out of Naruto in wisps at first, then completely enveloped the blonde in a hazy cloud. The smoke dissipated, and slowly a gigantic red fox rose out of Naruto. The fox completely detached itself from the boy and turned to look at him with a condescending look.

"You were a fool, kit. You promised you wouldn't die."

Kyuubi bent his great head down and nuzzled Naruto's limp form. He circled Naruto and lay down next to the blonde, tails encircling the lifeless body. Kyuubi stared down at him with an almost fatherly expression on his face. He started to lick the boy gently on his face. Neji recovered from the shock of seeing the Kyuubi, much less a nice one. He slowly approached the magnificent creature.

"Is there anything you can do?"

Kyuubi raised his head and looked deeply into Neji's eyes.

"You are the one that the kitling loves?" Neji swallowed.

"I am."

"There is one last method that might be able to revive him, but it is risky…"

"Please! I'll do anything!" Kyuubi looked at Neji with an almost proud expression on his canine features.

"Very well then. Stand back. This requires my undivided concentration." Neji stepped back.

The Kyuubi began to chant, and as he did the deep baritone began to fluctuate and change. Kyuubi's voice seemed to echo over on itself and the red chakra surrounding the fox pulsed rapidly and surrounded Naruto. As Kyuubi's chanting fluctuated in dynamics, the red chakra solidified around Naruto and hardened into an outline of the body. It cracked, and Naruto slowly rose into the air, surrounded by swirling threads of chakra.

Naruto continued to rise as Kyuubi continued to chant, until he was level with the fox. Kyuubi opened his mouth and delicately licked out a pattern on Naruto's body. The chakra surrounding Naruto writhed and plunged itself into the boy. Naruto's crystal flashed, and the boy began to glow. Kyuubi stepped back as Naruto continued to radiate light. The light faded slowly, and Naruto sank to the ground once more. Kyuubi and Neji waited as agonizing minutes passed by with no result. Neji bit his lip anxiously.

"We can only wait now. It is up to Naruto whether he wishes to return to the living or remain dead. His crystal shall indicate his status."

Minutes ticked by in tense anticipation as Naruto's amethyst crystal glowed and flickered on and off. Neji chewed on his lip nervously, drawing blood while Kyuubi swished his tails back and forth restlessly. The crystal flickered once more, then flashed completely before dimming altogether. Both Neji and Kyuubi leaned forward, hoping to see the result. Simultaneously, both noticed a movement in the boy. Naruto's fingers twitched as he slowly opened his eyes with a groan.

"Neji…Kyuubi…what are you doing here? I thought you were sealed inside of me, you damn fox you."

Neji gasped, eyes overflowing with emotion. Naruto, his kitsune, was indeed alive. He clasped his hands over his mouth as Naruto rubbed his eyes tiredly and looked around. He spotted Neji and smiled.

"Neji…"

Neji cried out and flung himself onto Naruto, kissing the boy hungrily. Naruto returned the kiss full force before Neji flung him to the ground, pinning him by his wrists. Kyuubi gagged playfully in the background ("Humans. I will never understand any of you."). Neji pulled his mouth off Naruto's, only to kiss the boy repeatedly all over his face. The Hyuuga nuzzled the boy's neck fiercly, burying his nose in every crevice of Naruto he could find ("Aack Neji..that tickles"). Kyuubi stood nearby, patiently waiting for his kit. Naruto broke free of Neji and walked toward Kyuubi. He stood, eyeing the fox with an unreadable expression in his azure eyes. The two stared at each other for the longest time until Naruto spoke.

"So…now that you've broken free of the seal, will you be leaving?" Kyuubi growled gently.

"Little fool…I will always be with you. I have indeed gone free, but you shall always have my unlimited chakra to use, which means you shall retain your immense stamina and healing power. You can form a mind link with me whenever you wish, and I will always be here to listen. If you ever truly need to see me, you need only to find me in the forests. The seal on your stomach will tell you when I am near. And do not fret. I shall visit once in a while."

"Thanks Kyuubi." The Kyuubi turned to go, then halted and looked back at Naruto.

"You will always be my kit. My kit that I'm proud of." And with that, Kyuubi rubbed his head against Naruto once and vanished. Naruto stood looking in the direction the Kyuubi took off in.

"You'll miss him, huh?" Naruto sighed.

"Yeah…but I'll see him around. He did say I could link my mind to his. Let me try."

Naruto concentrated on an image of Kyuubi.

"_Kyuubi!"_

"_Oi gaki, I was gone only three minutes and already you decide to annoy me?"_

"_Just checking. Have a nice vacation."_

"_Sheesh."_

Naruto closed the link and looked at Neji. He leaned in and kissed the Hyuuga deeply.

"Let's go home."

The two boys intertwined hands and started on their way home, completely forgetting about an unconscious Sakura on the road.

Later that Evening

"Ow! Neji, that hurts!" The Hyuuga sighed and continued to clean Naruto's wounds. Naruto wriggled around on Neji's bed.

"I just need to wrap your ankle; you sprained it earlier."

"But Kyuubi said I heal quickly!"

"Still, you need to rest it."

"I swear, you are such a mother hen…" Neji looked up and stared into Naruto's eyes. The blonde squirmed under the intense gaze.

"What?"

Neji bared his teeth and pounced, kissing the fox-child as if he couldn't get enough of him. Naruto returned the kiss, pouring all the love and lust he could muster. Articles of clothing were discarded and forgotten as the boys continued to explore the wonderful terrain of one another. Naruto undid Neji's hair tie, and the sinuous locks fell free and cascaded down the Hyuuga's back like a midnight waterfall, sending Naruto into the throes of ecstasy. The night wore on as the boys caressed and kissed each other lovingly.

Some Time Later

Naruto yawned sleepily and stretched. Contrary to popular belief, Neji could be quite wild when given the motivation. He turned towards the Hyuuga and kissed him softly. Neji mumbled an incoherent phrase and curled into the blonde, wrapping his legs around him. Naruto sighed. Neji possessed quite an appetite; it was awhile before he was sated. Naruto thanked whatever gods there were that he retained the stamina of the Kyuubi. The fox-child snuggled under the blankets and curled up to his lover, azure eyes dimming to the world.

Epilogue

Sakura woke up dazedly, only to find herself in a strange den, chained to the walls by her ankles and wrists.

"Wha? Where am I?" She heard a crude chuckle, and a gruesome bandit came out of the shadows.

"Here we are, boss. Picked up a juicy little girl off the road." Sakura growled.

"Put be down, you bastards! Let me go!" Snickers were heard. Oh crud. There were more of them. More bandits came out of the darkness and slowly made their way to the struggling girl.

"HELP! NEJIIIIII……"

Somewhere in the contentment of a soft warm bed, a dark-haired Hyuuga sneezed. The blonde next to him murmured in his sleep and hugged the Hyuuga, the two drifting on in the peaceful waves of sleep.

Owari

This is the last and final chap. Thank you all for reviewing; i am greatly indebted to all of you(corny speech) but don't give up! The reason I joined is cuz I wanna write lotsa NejiNaru stories! Therejust aren't enoughNejiNarus in the world of fanfiction! So I'll be writing a sequel and a completely new NejiNaru fic at the same time! Yayness! And thank you, wildflower-fireandwater for agreeing to be my editor!


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